


Paranormal Detectives

by 00Wandering_Ghost00



Series: WG Originals [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Brotherly Angst, Demons, Drama, Dysfunctional Family, Eventual Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Fluff and Angst, Ghosts, Horror, Ill-fated Romance, M/M, Reapers, Same-Sex Marriage, Same-Sex Parenting, Snark, Some Humor, Supernatural Elements, Unrequited Love, Witchcraft, witch-wars
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-09
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2018-12-25 17:56:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12041175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/00Wandering_Ghost00/pseuds/00Wandering_Ghost00
Summary: Seth Remington is a skilled and capable paranormal investigator, rumored to be insane. His younger brother, Gabriel is a university student, and a solid skeptic. After their parents' tragic death, they discover a secret room in their mother's office, and uncover the truth about her: She was a witch, protecting her hometown from malevolent supernatural entities. Now the task lies on her sons. Both men inherited their mother's magical abilities, but they weren't trained on how to use them. Will they be able to set aside their differences with each other, and continue what their mother started?(Basically a family drama with some supernatural elements.)





	1. My Gypsy Road Can't Take Me Home...

**Author's Note:**

> This is my original work, not belonging to any fandom. (Though I must state that it was made because of my best friend's comic, and also features some of her characters and creations, so it can be taken as a "spinoff" of sorts for her work, also based on some RP game sessions.) I don't want to do anything serious with this, being as crude and fanfiction-y, but I love these characters and this story, so I thought I'd give it a shot, and see if others find it interesting too.  
> If you dig shows like Supernatural or Gravity Falls, you will probably like this one. (And get the references. ;) ...And the inspiration. I don't deny it. :) )  
> Also, once again excuse me for any mistakes I made, or wonky wording, I'm not a native English-speaker, and this is a translation of my work. Likewise, I've never been to Seattle or Morton, but I would like to visit someday. :) (I have my knowledge from the interwebz. Sorry if there's anything wrong in there too, consider it an alternate universe. :D )

_20th of March, 2006._

_"...My gypsy road can't take me home_

_I drive all night just to see the light_

_My gypsy road can't take me home_

_I keep on pushin' 'cause it feels alright..."_

Seth Remington took a deep breath, and adjusted the rear-view mirror of the battered old Mustang. He was met with the reflection of his pair of tired, light-blue eyes. It’s been eight years, since he left his family and his old life behind. Not like the new one turned out better, but at least he was free. He started the engine, and was thinking bitterly about the last big fight between him and his father, that ended in him leaving the family home at the age of 18, and choose the Mustang and move from the sleepy lumber-town of Morton to Seattle. He remembered being caught for speeding the first day. He let out a small archaic smile at the memory. He went down on the pedal again, but this time he was more careful, especially around checkpoints. The early-spring evening was darkened by creeping storm clouds; wind shook the pine trees lining the road. Seth was getting close to his old home. He turned up the volume on the car’s radio, to shake off his nervousness.

_"...I used to be; now I'm not what you see, lord I try_

_And now it seems all those dreams have come true,_

_but they're passing me by_

_Some fast talkin' mama for a dollar put a smile on my face_

_I'm drivin' all night, I end up in the same old place..."_

The Remingtons were esteemed members of Morton’s society, even their elder son’s outright rebellious behaviour couldn’t really change that. Seth was a hellion, always up to something no good, and he regularly dragged his brother Gabriel along to his shenanigans. On a gloomy autumn afternoon in 1990, they were playing at their friend’s house, and they saw something there. Something that made their parents to send Seth to a psychiatric clinic, and the rest of the town to label him as insane. They saw a shadowy figure in the Fields’ house, and- according to Seth’s testimony – it resembled the late Mr. Fields, only his eyes were missing, two black holes yawned at them from his face. Nobody believed him, even later when he kept on telling his parents that he keeps seeing the scary figure. He accidentally set things on fire too, and was always punished for it, even called a pyromaniac once. Gabriel denied to have seen anything, he was so scared that he didn’t dare speaking of the event. He was only four years old, and his older brother reasoned that he either forgot about the ghost, or was just creeped out. Whatever was the case, Gabriel wasn’t dragged away to an asylum. Seth spent three years in the illustrious St. Dympna clinic for the mentally ill, before his release and return to his family. It all went down to hell from that. All the other kids were bullied and made fun of him and his brother, he always had nasty fights in school and at home with his father. As Seth kept thinking about his past, he didn’t really understand why he answered his younger brother’s call. He wondered how on Earth Gabriel got his cell phone number too, but after a long and awkward talk he learned that their parents passed away only days ago in a car accident. Seth put everything aside and drove to his place of birth, for his parents’ funeral. He drove down on Main Street, and stopped in front of the Roxy theatre. He saw a familiar face, and decided to say hi. His brother can wait.

Anne Fields didn’t notice the black ’69 Ford Mustang passing her by, because she was occupied trying to get away from Billy Jones, local drunk and troublemaker, who just happened to be a regular patron of the Bucksnort pub, where Anne was working at. “Get lost, loser!” she exclaimed, but was ignored. Billy and his friends caught her in a circle. Seth saw the whole thing, and he counted five or six men, until he reached them. “Hi honey, sorry for being late! It’s been a while.” he said out loud, making Billy and some of his gooneys turn around. “What are you doing here, Nutjob?” Billy asked, looking at Seth, who towered over him. “I’m out of prison, so I thought I celebrate it with kicking the living daylight out of you.” Seth told Billy in a cheerful tone. “Unless if you leave Anne alone, of course.” Anne was just as surprised to see her childhood friend like Billy was, but joined the cockfight. “Yeah, he’s right, Billy. Bug off!” Billy’s friends started to scatter. He wasn’t that wise though, still looking at Remington’s eyes, who stared back at him with an absent-minded half smile on his face. “So?” Seth asked “Will you leave by your own will, or decide to accidentally knock your head against my knee?” He knew that Billy was too much of a coward to try anything on his own, so he wasn’t surprised to see the little rat turn around and leave, grunting “When did you end up with this mad dog?” to Anne. “We’ve been together since high-school, you idiot!” Seth yelled after him, but Billy didn’t care. Anne felt like she fell out from the frying pan to the fire. “I…um… Sorry about your parents, Seth. My condolences.” she said, just to say something. “Thanks.” he answered briefly. “So… You’re back, or…?” Anne asked. Seth turned his head away from her. “I’m going back to Seattle after the funeral.” he stated. “You don’t have to be afraid of me moving back home.” he smiled awkwardly. “And if you excuse me, I’ll go before this conversation becomes even more embarrassing. Have a nice day, Annie! Keep away from Billy though!” He started to walk away, back to his car, when he heard Anne’s voice calling out his name. “Hey, wait! I… I didn’t see you in ages. Why don’t you come with me, and chat?” Seth clearly felt the forced nature of her offer, but he accepted. After all, the funeral was next day, and he wasn’t too eager to meet his brother anyway.

“Sure. Why not?” he answered. The rest of the afternoon was spent with forced kindness and faked interest from Anne’s part, polite resentment on his. He wanted to hit the highway and leave town, seeing only the green line of pine trees, as he was speeding away. He always felt his heart wrench whenever she was around him. Ever since they were teens, Seth felt something deeper towards Anne, but it was clear that she didn’t feel the same. He said goodbye, and left Anne to her work, feeling the urge to get as far away from this hellhole of a town as fast as possible. Anne made him promise to see her again after the funeral, but Seth didn’t want to keep it. There was enough heartache already. He never understood why the girl was so afraid of him. He never gave her any reason to be. He heard the rumours about his person, but he held Anne in much higher esteem than to believe in hearsay. She was around the Remingtons a lot, because she babysitted Gabriel, and Seth was teasing her a lot, but that alone was no good reason to act like he was some kind of a serial killer. He wanted to tell her how obvious her fear was, but he didn’t want to hurt her in any way. He after all, was mentally ill, been in an asylum, so maybe her fear wasn’t entirely without cause. He slowly walked back to his car, when he saw Billy Jones and his illustrious company blocking his way. “Come on, Billy…” Seth groaned. Billy was saying something about teaching him a lesson, but Seth wasn’t paying attention. He measured his enemies, and decided that he will strike at the biggest with a tire iron in his hands. They were five against one, but Seth managed to knock Tire Iron guy and Billy out before he got hit on the head and passed out too. He regained his senses in the Sheriff’s office, in a small cell.

Gabriel Remington suspected that calling his wayward brother home isn’t a good idea, but even he was surprised when he received the Sheriff’s phone call. Seth was sitting in a cell, his face was bruised, but he seemed otherwise okay. Gabriel felt his blood pressure rising as he waited for the police officer accompanying him to open the cell. “Hi!” Seth greeted his brother with a grin. “Do you have any idea how much your bail cost me?” Gabriel asked. “I’m happy to see you too, bro.” Seth added. “Just what in the world would it take for you to stay out of trouble Seth? Even for one day?” the younger brother asked irritatedly. “Jones was attacking me.” Seth defended. “There are five people telling otherwise.” Gabriel sighed. “All of them are his friends.” the older brother added. “They aren’t going to testify against him.” Gabriel swept his long ginger hair from his face. “Get out of there, and come home!” he asked. “I want this whole thing to end.” Seth looked at him, grin still on his face, but this time, his expression hardened. “Oh, I think I’ll be fine here. I couldn’t sleep with the thought of you getting into a debt because of me. They’ll release me tomorrow, so we’ll meet at the funeral. ‘Night!” Gabriel stood there, and wanted to strangle his older brother, but he just shrugged and went home. Seth lay down on his bunk, and was thinking about how many nights he spent in cells. In his teens, he was a very frequent guest at the very cell he was in again, and later, after he ran away from home, he did things he wasn’t proud of. Gabriel didn’t know, and Seth didn’t want to tell. He didn’t want his brother, family favourite good child, to have one more reason to scorn him. Meanwhile, Gabriel was also thinking about how Seth’s years in a mental hospital marked his relationship with everyone in town. His older brother was a walking time bomb, and Gabriel once again cursed himself for ever considering calling him home. Eight years passed without a word from him, and the younger Remington found himself thinking that it would be better if things stayed that way.

_21th of March, 2006._

It was raining the next day, and Seth watched the whole town giving condolences to his brother, holding his hand, patting him on the shoulder, and faking compassion. No one came over to him, and he was grateful for it. He wanted to run away from the tedious formalities, the guilt, and the nasty looks he got. To ignore them, he started to think about what caused their parents’ death. Gabriel said it was a car-accident, and it happened on the same road he took to get into the town. Seth left the ceremony and went to see the scene for himself. Sadly, the police and the rain erased almost every clue he could find. He kicked a pebble with his combat-boots, and watched as it lands deep in the woods, and turned around to leave. He didn’t see the pair or glowing red eyes, watching his every move from behind the trees.

Gabriel felt nothing but emptiness. He saw his brother leave and he thought he should be surprised, but he wasn’t. He was waiting all afternoon for the black Mustang to show up on their front yard, but it didn’t. It arrived long after sunset. Seth got out, slammed the car’s door, and glanced disapprovingly at the smoke that emerged from under the engine-hood. Gabriel frowned and tried hard to keep all the scolding he was about to give to his brother, as he stepped in from the door. He tried to see the situation through Seth’s eyes, and he had to admit that he understood why his brother left the funeral. So his voice was a little bit less condescending when he stood next to Seth and spoke. “I understand that you’re mad at our parents, and the whole wide world, but for crying out loud, you should really grow some sense of tact.” Seth held up his hand. “Ah-ah-ah. I need no lecture from you on how should I live my life, thank you.” “Really?” Gabriel replied. “After living in a car like a drifter for eight years? I think you are indeed need of some counselling, my dear brother, for your life is a freaking train wreck!” Seth looked at him without a hint of an expression on his face. “Speaking about wrecks, have you seen the police report of our parents’ accident?” “There was a malfunction in the brake system, and they crashed into a tree.” Gabriel answered. “False.” Said Seth. “What the hell makes you say that?” the younger brother asked frustratedly. “I saw the Sheriff’s report, and it seemed like it was made in a rush. There were obvious clues he left out.” Gabriel sat down. “Seth, you broke in to the Sheriff’s office?” the older brother ignored the question. “I’ve found the footprints of a hooved creature, approximately seven feet tall, or maybe taller at the scene.” Gabriel let out an irritated laugh. “I can’t even… You break in to the Sheriff’s office, and then go hunt giant deer. And it’s only day one.” Seth nodded. “Not exactly the way you described, but that’s what happened. The prints didn’t belong to a deer though, more like to a goat or sheep, which is – of course – unusual on its own, considering our town makes its living from lumber. Besides, someone would probably spot a seven feet tall goat in the woods…” Gabriel sighed, and hid his face in his palms. “Listen, let’s hope nobody saw you entering the Sheriff’s office, and forget about this nonsense!” he asked as calmly as he could. “Why?” Seth snapped at him “You just accept a blatant lie about our parents’ death, not even wanting to know the truth…” “No…” Gabriel exclaimed “…because I’m not…” Seth was looking at his brother with a cold and dark expression. “Go ahead.” he said. “Say it. I dare you.” The younger sibling immediately regretted that he even spoke. “Seth…” “Crazy. Is that what you wanted to say?” his voice was like a blizzard. Gabriel shook his head. “I’m sorry. You know I didn’t mean to…” “I got used to it.” Seth shrugged. “But these are facts, Gabe. Not some obscure conspiracy theory I weaved to amuse myself.” he smiled bitterly “But why would you believe me? I’m just a former inmate of the looney bin.” Gabriel looked at him with a saddened expression. “You’re my brother. And I understand that you’ve gone through tough things. But you should really take your meds and stop this nonsense. There was an investigation. And they found broken equipment, not a giant goat in the forest.” Seth shook his head in anger. “That’s not true. There could be something lurking out there, something responsible for our parents’ death, and who knows who else’s.” Gabriel still tried to remain calm, but was failing. “There’s. Nothing. Out. There. Just the trees.” Seth sighed. He gave up. “I better go.” he said. “Where?” his brother asked. “You want to go all the way back to Seattle with a broken car?” “By feet if I must!” Seth replied, shutting the door behind him. The rain was still falling, so Seth took on the hood of his jacket, and trotted into the woods. Being alone calmed him for some degree.

Gabriel was still looking at the door for a few minutes before deciding to follow his brother. He took his raincoat and flashlight, and went out from the house. He shortly heard a noise he couldn’t quite identify, and his brother’s pained cry. Gabriel started to run. He arrived just in time to see a creature which looked like nothing he believed to exist. A head taller than Seth, having hooved legs and clawed hands, that sliced up the fabric of the older Remington’s clothes and flesh like a knife cuts butter, and with a head that vaguely resembled something human, if it wasn’t for the two huge antlers protruding from it’s forehead. Gabriel shouted at the creature, and when it saw the flashlight, it roared and vanished to thin air. Seth fought himself up to his feet. There were deep cuts on his arms, and one on his chest, his blood darkened the colour of his blue hoodie. Gabriel went over and helped his brother up. “What the devil… I never saw an animal like that before.” he said. Seth lowered his head. “It wasn’t an animal.” he stated. “It was a wendigo. Probably the one I saw the footprints of…” Gabriel scoffed. “Please Seth, don’t start again with mythical creatures.” Seth let out a small laughter. “I see; you don’t believe your own eyes.” “Come on, we have to get these scratches tended.” the younger sibling stated.

Later, as Seth was waiting for Gabriel to find the first-aid kit, he heard his brother call his name. He got up, and went over. They were standing in their mother’s office, and there was another room behind one of her bookshelves. “Oh, a secret door.” Seth said without any enthusiasm. “Aren’t we should…” Gabriel started, but fell silent as his brother was already inside, picking up books, running his fingers through notes and accessories to things that in Gabriel’s vocabulary, belonged in a horror movie or some cult. “Look at this!” he heard Seth’s voice “Mysterious disappearings around our neighbourhood, documented in the 1980’s…” he picked up another notebook “About rituals that bind and repel evil spirits…” Gabriel peeked into the book from behind Seth’s shoulder. “And it was written by…” His voice sounded surprised. “Samantha Remington.” Seth looked at him, and the two brothers spoke at the same time. “Mom.”

_12th of May, 2006._

Days passed since the brothers found their mother’s diaries, and Seth was working hard to decipher them, and to update his own notes with knowledge from Samantha’s journals. Gabriel was worried about him, but at least he could keep him at home. Anne Fields crossed the street to the Remington residence, and greeted Gabriel one morning. “Hi, Gabe!” he was startled, but smiled and went over to her. “Hey, what a surprise! What can I do for you?” Anne bit her lower lip. “Is Seth still here?” she asked. Gabriel nodded. “Yes, he’s trying to fix the Mustang. Some sparking-plugs went off, and needs replacement. He’ll leave tomorrow.” Anne smiled sadly. “I’m sorry. But it’s probably be the best.” Gabriel was silent for a moment, then before Anne could turn away, he reached out and held her hand. “Wait, could I ask you a favour?” Anne stopped, and looked back at Gabriel curiously. “Like what?” Remington leaned closer, and lowered his voice. “I need to go with Seth. He’s… unwell. Delusional, and after we found our mom’s secret hiding place in her office he’s obsessed with deciphering her journals written in code.” he let out a worried sigh. “I’m afraid I have to take him back to the St. Dympna and leave him there for another couple of years. Could you watch over the house while I’m away?” Anne nodded. “Of course.” she noticed Seth’s tall frame behind Gabriel. “Hello.” he greeted. Anne felt the need to flee. “Of course, I will come over and take a look at the house while you’re away. Have fun, you two!” after her hasty retreat, Seth looked at his brother questioningly. “I…um… I asked her to watch over the house after we are gone.” Seth tilted his head. “We?” Gabriel nodded. “I will go with you.” Seth chuckled, and shook his head. “I don’t remember you renting the shotgun-seat from me.” “Then I do it now.” Gabriel stated. “Listen, I just lost my parents. I couldn’t bear losing you too.” seeing Seth’s piercing stare, he continued. “You were hurt, and who knows what you get yourself into if I’m not around, so I go with you. Like it or not.” Seth kept staring at his brother with his icy blue eyes, then shrugged. “Fine with me.”

_13th of May, 2006._

“So… Where are we going?” Gabriel asked closing the door behind him. “Hey, is there always a mess around here?” he asked, looking at the serious amount of garbage and scattered personal belongings of his brother. Seth was looking at a road map, connecting places with red lines, and answered without even looking up. “Order is for the weak. Geniuses can see through the chaos.” Gabriel laughed. “Suuure, Genius. Pray, tell me which one of us got the better degree at school?” Seth put down the map, and glanced at his younger brother. “Pray, tell me which one of us was always crying like a little girl and running away from bullies?” Gabriel raised his hands. “Touché. You still didn’t answer my question though.” Seth ignited the engine, and sighed. “Well, we have plenty of stuff to do around Morton. A wendigo, some ghosts, and other reported strange things happened ever since our mother decided to document them for some reason. But before I could do that, I need to see an old friend of mine in Seattle.” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Please tell me it’s not another delusional paranoid… I mean quote-unquote Paranormal Investigator.” Seth looked at him with an expressionless face. “Ha. Ha. Ha. Oh, you’re killing me, Gabriel.” he said sarcastically “When did you buy a personality? Did humor cost you some extra?”

The black ’69 Mustang with the bantering brothers drove off to the damp, misty spring afternoon. A pair of glowing red eyes followed the vehicle until it left the town of Morton to the route to Seattle.


	2. House in the Woods part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The brothers receive their parents' will, and a letter from Samantha, in which she warns her sons from beyond the grave, to stay away from the house, that stands deep in the forest. Of course, Seth takes it as an invitation to take a look around, so they run into the wendigo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will have some glitches with dates, because it will focus on some things that were mentioned in the previous (prologue) chapter, mostly the case of the wendigo.  
> And because this chapter is quite long, I will separate it into two pieces.
> 
> Also, 15th of March is Gabriel's birthday, so it's a "Happy B-day, dear OC" post. :D

Before I forget, here are some information about the Remington brothers. They contain spoilers, but if you don't mind, go give them a read too! [Seth](https://kirassvaeri.deviantart.com/art/Character-Info-Sheet-Seth-Remington-PDA-699349916) [Gabriel](https://kirassvaeri.deviantart.com/art/Character-Info-Sheet-Gabriel-Remington-PDA-699353073)

* * *

_27th of March, 2006._

Gabriel was busy making coffee, while his brother arranged and decoded the contents of the journals they have found the other day. Seth spent most of his time studying the books, and it made Gabriel worry for his already unstable mental state. He tried to reason with his brother, but they ended up fighting because of it. The younger brother didn’t believe that these so-called journals are anything of use, or that they are more than some fantasy-project of sorts, that their mother indulged herself in her free time. “You’re wasting your time.” he told his brother. “Mom was only writing these for fun, and you take it way too seriously.” he said, casting a scolding glance towards his older brother, who trotted down the stairs to the kitchen, with one of the aforementioned journals under his arm. “Wow.” Seth stopped and shook his head. “That totally sounded like dad.” He poured a cup of coffee for himself, and sat down to the table, continuing to decipher the journal. Gabriel’s curiosity won over his common sense, so he leaned over his brother’s shoulder to take a look at his work. He saw random occult symbols, numbers and letters scattered on the page. “The hell is this? Occult Bingo?” He asked and got a dirty look from Seth as an answer. “I’m sure I can break the code if you just let me work on it.” the older brother added. Gabriel shrugged. “All right. I have to go to work anyway. Food’s in the fridge, make yourself at home.”

After Gabriel left, Seth thought he’ll go and take a shower and do laundry, to get his mind off from the hard nut that his mother’s code appeared to be. Then suddenly he realised something. The more he was thinking about it, the more obvious it became. He locked himself up to his room again, earning the not-so silent resentment of his younger brother, only coming down for dinner. “I’m such an idiot!” he said, raising his reddened eyes to the ceiling. “Tell me something I don’t know.” Gabriel replied, and got a kick in the shin under the table. “Ow! Evil bastard!” he hissed and returned the favour to his brother, but with much less intensity. They laughed and goofed around for a bit, like they did in their teenage years, before Seth went away. Gabriel found himself thinking about those long years he spent without his brother’s company, and suddenly he didn’t feel calling Seth home was a mistake. On the contrary, he looked at his toothy grin, and the old, empty house felt like home again. “I missed you, Twatface.” he said, dodging Seth’s attempt at kicking his leg again. “Let’s not get too emotional here, okay?” the older brother said, raising his hands, and ceasing his attack on Gabriel’s lower limbs. “What did you do? Where have you been? Eight years without a word from you, Seth…” the younger Remington mused.

The older brother looked away “I’ve been here and there… All around. Did a lot of things you wouldn’t even believe.” His smile still stayed on his face as he turned back to Gabriel. “Oh, really?” the younger Remington asked “Like what? Seeing a wendigo?” Seth nodded. “Among many other things.” Gabriel was curious, so he nudged his brother. “Why don’t you tell me about those things? Come on, I’m all ears, you won’t have another opportunity like this!” Seth chuckled and shook his head. “Maybe another time. We have more important things to do.” “Right.” the younger brother nodded. “Like seeing the family lawyer tomorrow because of the inheritance.” Seth groaned. Gabriel carried on “You have to dress appropriately. Band tees and jeans are out of the question.” “I shall dig something out from my old clothes then.” Seth commented. “Or maybe borrow one of Dad’s suits.”

* * *

 

_28\. March, 2006._

The next morning found the brothers sitting in the old Mustang and driving to the lawyer’s office downtown Morton. Seth complained about the suit he had to wear all along the way, that it made him itch, it was uncomfortable and why did he have to come. He always preferred comfortable, practical pieces of clothing anyway. Another difference between him and his younger brother. After a round of tedious formalities, the family lawyer – an offish, older man by the name of Mr. Harris – read the law paragraphs concerning the case, and then read Robert Remington’s will. Their father left everything to Gabriel, like his older son never existed. Seth was excluded from any and all heritage except for a not-too kind-hearted goodbye note. Gabriel always knew that there was a considerable amount of bad blood between his father and his older brother, but he would never expect their parents to disown Seth. He glanced over to his brother with a sad, almost apologetic look on his face, but Seth was listening to the lawyer wearing a blank mask on his features. Then, when they were about to leave, Mr. Harris stopped them and handed over an envelope to Seth. “I believe this one is for you, Mr. Remington. It is a letter from your mother, for you only.” Seth opened the letter with heavy heart, and read the familiar handwriting. It was an apology of sorts from Samantha, and a warning.

 

_“My dear son!_

_When you read this letter, I’ll be gone. Please forgive your father, for he didn’t know, he couldn’t know what you’re going through. You know how stubborn can he be sometimes, the two of you were so much alike in this. Take care of Gabriel for me, and of yourself as well. You only have each other from now on. If you want to learn about all the things you experienced, or you want some kind of closure, go and ask G. G. She will help you in any way she can, by my last wish._

_I love you so much._

_Mom  
_

_P.S.: Beware of the old house in the forest. Stay out of it, at all cost!”_

 

At home, Gabriel waited until Seth changes into something more comfortable, then told him “It’s not fair.” Seth looked into his eyes, and his expressionless mask changed into a bitter smile. “Life is not fair, little brother.” he was already packing to leave. “Besides, I still have my weary old Mustang. Like Father dearest always wanted. The last time he told me it’s either his way or the highway, I chose the latter.” Gabriel didn’t need a reminder of that. The memory was too vivid in his mind. “I don’t care what Father said, or wanted.” he said firmly. “I will speak with Mr. Harris, and make arrangements, so you will not be cut out from anything…” Seth interrupted him with a mirthless laugh. “Oh, no need. I spent way too much time in this god-forsaken dunghill. I pack my bags and hit the road as soon as possible.” Gabriel shook his head. Seth stopped arranging his belongings. “I really don’t want to be in your debt. I’m not even your brother anymore, so…” It was Gabriel’s turn to interrupt. “Stop it! Okay? Just stop.” He couldn’t miss the painful expression on Seth’s face for only a moment. “You can stay here, as long as you want or need to.” he stated. “You _are_ my brother, and always will be. I will not let a piece of paper separate us.” Seth turned away from him, so Gabriel couldn’t see his brother’s face, but as he turned around to leave, he heard Seth saying “Thank you.” on a low voice. 

Gabriel spent a lot of time thinking, alone in the kitchen. Seth locked himself up in his room again, and the younger brother didn’t want to drag him out of his shell this time. They both needed a little solitude. As he sank in his thoughts, Gabriel glanced over to the open notebook Seth left on the kitchen table. There were a lot of handwritten notes, both by his mother and his brother, and a drawing of sorts as well. It depicted a creature very similar to the wendigo that attacked Seth a few days ago. Gabriel scoffed and closed the notebook with grumbling “Nonsense” under his nose. He had a nightmare that day. Gabriel wandered around in an old, abandoned house, and was chasing the source of some incorporeal voice along with his brother, but something went horribly wrong. An invisible assailant stabbed Seth to death in front of him, and prompted Gabriel to run, but it was in vain. He woke up right when a rusty blade manifested from thin air and hit him.

Seth heard his brother’s scream, so he went over to his room, and knocked. “Hey, are you all right?” Gabriel opened the door, looking like he just seen a ghost. “I had a nightmare.” he said flatly. “You don’t say, I bet the whole neighbourhood heard it.” Seth riposted. A thunderstorm started outside, making the lights in the old house flicker. “Shouldn’t we go downstairs? I can’t sleep, and I doubt you want to after your nightmare.” Seth suggested, for which Gabriel gave a nod. He followed his older brother down the stairs, but suddenly Seth stopped, and gestured to Gabriel to be quiet. “What?” the younger man asked on a hushed voice. “You think I’m crazy anyway, so I’ll tell you: Somebody, or _something_ is in the house. I’m positive I locked the front door the last time I was downstairs, but now it’s wide open.” the older brother answered similarly. Gabriel shared his brother’s concern this time, for burglars were a pretty real threat, even in small towns like Morton. They went back upstairs, and armed themselves with Seth’s old baseball bat and their father’s trusty shotgun, then proceeded to search the house thoroughly. They found nobody. Only a row of weird footprints that led from the front door to the living room, and out the house to the porch. As Seth followed them, he suddenly felt like somebody’s watching him, and he was tense with a sense of dread. His hands tightened around the butt of the shotgun he carried, and he carefully looked around the house. The storm was still raging outside, and as a lightning flashed through the sky, Seth could see the wendigo, that slashed him open a few days ago, standing in the row of trees, only a mere mile away from their house. He aimed at it, but the creature was gone when the next lightning illuminated the night.

* * *

_29 th March, 2006._

“It’s crazy!” Gabriel scolded his brother. “Wendigo doesn’t exist.” “Name one animal that is capable of opening locked doors and vanishing into thin air.” Seth riposted. “Besides, I know what I saw.” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “You only saw it for a second, it could be anything!” They were arguing in the front yard, next to Seth’s Mustang. The early morning air was still damp from the night’s rain, and heavy grey clouds hung over the small town, and the nearby mountains. Seth opened his car’s door, and was about to sit behind the steering wheel. “Fine, you stay at home then. I go look for this G.G., and find out what she knows about all of this.” he stated. That’s when the Sheriff’s SUV parked right next to them. “Good morning, boys!” the town’s old lawman greeted them. “Mornin’” Seth answered in chorus with his brother. “Is everything all right here? There was a pretty big storm last night.” the Sheriff asked. “Yeah, it’s all fine.” Gabriel answered. “What brings you here?” Seth added. “As a matter of fact, I’m looking for my deputy.” the older man answered. “He supposed to be in the station, but we lost contact with him a few hours ago. He went out to the old mine, taking this road. Have you seen him by any chance?” The brothers glanced at each other then turned back to the Sheriff. “No, sorry.” Seth answered. “Can we be of any help though?” Gabriel added. “Well, if you have time to kill.” The Sheriff shrugged, and got out from the SUV. “Here, take these radios, they work even in the middle of nowhere, and I suggest you join one of the search parties around the old mine and the surrounding forest area. They will fill you in with any news they have, just tell them I’ve sent ya.” Gabriel took the pair of communications devices, and told the Sheriff they’ll do what they can. The old man left them then.

The brothers went back to the house, with Gabriel running up to his room to prepare for going to work in the local high-school, but Seth thought it would be better if they’d stay together. Gabriel’s cell phone was left on the kitchen table, next to the journal Seth was working with at the moment, so the older Remington picked it up, and called the school’s vice-principal, to tell her that Gabriel can’t make it to help them out today. “Ah, you know my little brother is prone to get cold in this weather, and he was outside yesterday in that nasty storm, and now he’s all feverish and sneezing his brains out. It’d be better for him to rest for a few days. I’m so sorry.” The vice-principal expressed her worries regarding Gabriel’s health, and agreed that he should stay at home, even promised to visit him in the afternoon and bring some soup. “That would be just too kind, thank you!” Seth said sweetly, then hung up, right when his brother tapped his shoulder. “What on Earth are you doing with my phone?” seeing his older brother’s smug smile – that always reminded Gabriel of a fox for some reason – he repeated the question. “What’s with this Belinda?” Seth asked instead of answering. “She seems to be very concerned about you.” “Belinda is the secretary and vice-principal of the high school we both attended and where I’m now working as a part-time teacher until I finish university and can work full-time.” Gabriel explained. “You forgot that she’s crazy about you.” Seth added, with his fox-smile still on his face. “I don’t think so.” Gabriel commented aridly. “And why not?” Seth nudged him. “You’re a handsome fellow, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise.” Gabriel’s face became bright red. “Why… Why do you say that?” he stuttered. “It’s a fact.” Seth shrugged. “You got the better part of the gene pool, when it comes to looks.” Gabriel didn’t agree with his brother on that. Sure, he was told many times that he’s easy on the eyes. With an angular face, and big green eyes that resembled the forest floor in autumn, along with his soft smile and reddish-blond hair, he was a walking ray of sunlight. Seth on the other hand, was taller, more muscular, and no matter what he thought of himself, wasn’t bad to look at either. He had the same angular chin, but his face was a bit longer, along with his nose, he inherited from their mother’s line, same with his bright blue eyes and auburn curls that seemed to be indomitable. “It’s not true.” Gabriel stated after the silence became too awkward. “Also, we have a lost deputy sheriff to look for, so how about we get to work?” Seth nodded. “Right.”

The rain started to fall again, which didn’t make the brothers trotting on the forest trail happy. They had to abandon the Mustang on the road, next to the lonely patrol car they’ve found. At least they knew that the deputy went into the forest near the old and closed mines, so they alerted the other members of the search party. The pine trees rustled menacingly in the wind. “Why did he leave the road?” Gabriel asked his brother near a clearing, where they both stopped to look for tracks or any kind of clue regarding their own whereabouts. “I’m already thinking that we got lost, how could he navigate through the forest on his own?” Seth remained silent, observing the footprints he just found in the damp soil. “He must be somewhere near.” he commented “I think I can follow his trails. Come on!” Gabriel went after his brother, directing his flashlight to illuminate the shadowy path in front of them. The trails contained drops of blood, and lead them even deeper into the forest. Seth’s radio sometimes went static, which occurred more frequently as they distanced from the road. The last broadcast was from another member of the search party, asking for any reports. Seth didn’t even bother to respond. The footprints and blood were nearly washed away by the rain, but it wasn’t stopping Seth from following their trail like a hound. Gabriel could barely keep up with him. After what was approximately half an hour of treading through heavy terrain, they arrived at a small clearing, with an old and abandoned log-house, that probably served as a ranger station or hunter’s lodge in its brighter days. “Why did you stop?” Gabriel asked his brother, who stared at the house with a curious expression. “This is the house mother wrote about in her letter.” Seth answered. “And the one she warned us to stay away from.” Gabriel peeked out from behind Seth, and examined the building. “Well, it’s pretty understandable. I mean, just look at it, it’s a miracle it still stands.” Seth had a strong doubt about their mother’s warning was meant for something mundane, such as a collapsed roof, but he didn’t want to argue with his brother. “Well, it does stand, and as you probably noticed, the footprints lead to the house. Maybe the deputy is in there.” “Why do you think that?” Gabriel asked. “I don’t know, there were blood in and around his footprints, so he must be injured. And there was also a storm, so I guess even a rotten old shack is better than get soaked in the woods while a bear or mountain lion chases you.” Seth mused. Gabriel sighed. “All right. Let’s check out the shack.”

The old hunter’s lodge was barely a roof above four walls which slowly gave way to the forest foliage. Branches and small weeds protruded from the floor or the cracks between the logs that served as building blocks of the wall. The ruins of old trophies littered around the room the brothers entered through the hole in the place of the front door. “Well, I don’t see anything.” Gabriel stated. “How about we leave… right now?” Seth felt uneasy, same as his brother, but he didn’t answer, just shook his head and continued forward. “Come on!” Gabriel groaned, but followed him. Seth stopped again quite shortly after they entered, and looked at a deer skull, nailed to the wall. There was a mark on its forehead, and several strange constructs surrounded the place on the ground, made from twigs and various bones. Gabriel covered his face with his hand, to prevent himself from vomiting. The bones were human. And in the middle of the hellish design of blood, gore, bones and branches lied the remains of the lost deputy. The body was partially eaten and relatively fresh. Gabriel turned away and threw up in the corner. Seth flinched, and searched for his radio to call the rest of the search party, but he stopped and froze in the middle. He heard a small noise. Gabriel was still sick, but he heard it too. “We’re not alone.” Seth uttered in an eerily calm tone. Gabriel heard his heartbeat, and he turned around slowly, his grip got tighter around the hilt of the flashlight he carried. He turned it off. Seth snuck over to him, and grabbed his shoulder, to drag him into what seemed to be the remains of a bedroom. They stuck to the wall, and Seth gestured to Gabriel to be quiet. He peeked out, and saw a huge, vaguely humanoid form coming in, and stopping to smell the air. The thing had red eyes that were glowing in the dark like embers.  

Seth turned back to his brother, who also saw the creature, and shook his head. Seth looked at the flashlight Gabriel still held in his hand, and then nodded towards the wendigo. Gabriel needed a moment to process what his brother tried to communicate, but he got it, and nodded. The thing was repelled by light the last time they encountered. If they wanted to get out from the shack, they needed to get past the wendigo, preferably without getting caught by it. Seth raised his hand, and counted to three, then the two brothers rushed out, bathing the creature in the sharp white beam of the flashlight. The wendigo growled and attacked them, but Gabriel could run out to the clearing. Seth followed him, but a long, clawed hand grabbed him. Gabriel wanted to go back and help his brother, but he was attacked by a second creature, rushing at him from the trees. Seth fought to get free from the claws of the wendigo that was twice his size, but even his considerable strength wasn’t enough. He felt the fangs of the creature tearing into his flesh, but what sent him over the edge wasn’t the pain or the fear of dying. He saw his brother getting overwhelmed by the second wendigo, and helplessly trying to evade its bites. Gabriel was terrified and fighting for his life. Seth felt something snap inside him. He growled, and his rage manifested in flames all around him, combusting the two wendigoes and part of the building. The creatures shrieked and vanished. Seth dropped to his knees. He felt like all of his energy left, and he was slowly slipping into unconsciousness. The flames disappeared, only leaving a scorched mark on the nearby trees and the logs of the building.

Gabriel seriously thought he will die, but then the creature of his nightmares got consumed by flames and vanished into thin air. He stood up, looking around to see if there’s any more of the things around, but saw none. He did see Seth collapsing to the floor though. Gabriel rushed over to his brother, and tried to wake him up. It took a few minutes, but he succeeded in bringing Seth back to life. “What just happened?” Gabriel asked, still holding on to Seth. “We got nearly killed by two wendigoes. Don’t know about the fire though.” the older brother replied. “Can you walk?” Gabriel asked him after a short pause, and Seth nodded. “I just feel a little weak, that’s all.” They headed back to the road and their car holding on to one another. Gabriel supported Seth, who could barely walk in the beginning, but regained a bit of his strength as they distanced from the old shack. The bite mark on his shoulder got inflamed and hurt him, but he ignored it. “Better go to the doctor with that after we’re back on the road.” Gabriel commented, looking at the nasty wounds on his brother’s arms and shoulder. “I guess it wanted me. It was the same from before.” Gabriel cocked his head to the side, and furrowed his brow. Seth continued. “They are predators. And the one that attacked me? It marked me, and probably got my scent as we were hiding nearby. We should have been more careful…” After an hour of wandering around, they found the trail back to the road. Gabriel spotted someone standing next to the Mustang, looking right in their direction. It was a small woman, somewhere in her late forties. As the two men appeared on the road, she went over to them. “Are you the Remington brothers?” she asked. “It depends on who’s asking.” Seth answered aridly. Gabriel made an irritated sound. “Yes, we are.” he said. “And who might you be?” The woman smiled at him and answered “I mean no harm. Your mother was my friend. Her last wish towards me was to find you and guide you. My name is Gale. Gale Grey.” Seth and Gabriel looked at each other and uttered two letters in sync. “G.G.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The quote and title of the former chapter was from Cinderella's "Gypsy Road". Be prepared for the usual lyric-quoting here and there. ;)
> 
> Also, if you read it, I'd love to read your opinions, suggestions, questions in return. I treat any kind of feedback as a gift, so it's not at all mandatory, but I'm just a curious person. :) (But I might have one condition: Even if you don't like the story, or some elements, be civil about voicing your disapproval. As long as I don't insult you, please refrain from doing it towards me. Thank you.)


	3. House in the Woods part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After their clash with the wendigo, the brothers met the mysterious woman behind the pseudonym G. G. They learn a lot about their mother's hidden life, along with their heritage. Needless to say, Gabriel has troubles accepting it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to give a little glimpse of in-universe history regarding witches and the supernatural, which is all my creation, containing traces of folklore and bits of other, already existing fantasy universes. There might be overlaps. They might be boring.
> 
> Also, sorry again for the long delay, I was struggling with a major writer's block lately, and had some offline life stuff to do, but I'm here now! ^^

_Also, as sort of apology for the late update, you can find some ~~eyesores~~ artwork here: [PD01](https://sta.sh/02fzz17euo9l) [PD02](https://sta.sh/029uumdue539) [PD03  ](https://sta.sh/0va1ho1rke6)_

_[PD04](https://sta.sh/0211efwpqy63) _

* * *

 

_29\. March 2006._

Seth was in no shape to drive, but it still took a solid fifteen minutes to convince him to let Gabriel drive all three of them to the nearest ranger station, and another ten to convince Seth to see a doctor about his wounds. Gale sat on the backseat, not really talking to any of the young men arguing in front of her. She was waiting for the appropriate time. Gabriel was worried. As the doctor and the nurses tended Seth’s injuries, he turned to Gale, and began to shower her with questions. “Okay, first of all: Where were you all this time? Why didn’t we see you before if you were our mother’s friend? Why are you here now, and what do you want?” The woman just shook her head. “All in their time, Gabriel. I will answer you, but not here and not now.” She fished out a business card from her pocket. “This is my phone number and address. Come over and see me later, when both of you feel better.” She left them then. Gabriel sighed and shoved the card in his wallet, then helped his grumpy older brother back to the car he then drove back to their front yard. “I don’t like it.” Seth commented. “Tell me about it!” Gabriel replied. “We nearly got eaten by some monsters that shouldn’t exist, and this old crone just appears out of nowhere claiming she was mom’s friend, but we never saw her before. I think I had enough of this day already. And it’s only half past noon.”

Seth suppressed a smile as he was listening to his brother complaining. “You’re right.” he added “Something’s fishy around Gale, and I intend to know what.” Gabriel nodded, and opened the car’s door to get out and helped his brother as well. Seth’s strength came back bit by bit, but he was still a bit dizzy, and needed help to navigate back to the house. He called the Sheriff, and got informed that another person, a local journalist by the name of Sarah Armstrong went missing as well. After the local police and the rangers secure and clear the old shack, they have to send another search party to look for her. Seth volunteered to go, despite the roaring pain in his wounds. He knew nothing good will come if there are more wendigoes out there, and the search party or the forest rangers run in with them. In the meantime, Gabriel stared at the small piece of paper with Gale’s phone number on it. As much as a part of him wanted to stay out of whatever insanity Seth got himself into, another part wanted to know more. He glanced over to his brother, leaning to the wall and exchanging information with the Sheriff with a grim look on his face, and he felt the un-reasonable part of him win his inner struggle. He sent a text message asking if they could go and talk to Gale the next day. He got a positive answer, and put his phone away with a heavy sigh. Seth turned to give him a curious look, but then they saw another car park in their front yard, and a young woman emerging from it, going swiftly to open the door to the back seat and getting a package out, closing the door and giving a quick glance at the rear-view mirror to make sure everything is fine. She then proceeded to the front door of the house, and was startled a bit when Seth opened it. “Hello, you must be Belinda. We were talking on the phone this morning.” Belinda’s face lightened up with recognition. “Oh, so you’re Gabriel’s brother! Forgive me, I heard a lot about you, but never saw you in person before.” She lifted her hand with the package up. “Can I come in? Is Gabriel all right?” Seth stepped away from the door, and closed it behind the chatty woman. Belinda kept on asking questions regarding the younger Remington-sibling, which Seth answered as well as he could without telling that his brother’s illness is actually a ruse. Gabriel successfully hid in his room in the meantime. He had to wait for quite a while before Belinda left. He found Seth with his sly fox-smile on again. “Man, she’s so into you that I’m seriously starting to get jealous.”  Gabriel blushed, and cleared his throat. “Well, sadly I’m not interested in her romantically, so she’s in for an unpleasant surprise.” he stated aridly. “What is it?” Seth asked “Her hair? The constant chirping? Come on Gabe, she’s a nice girl.” Gabriel shook his head. “Chemistry’s not working, is all.” he said, hoping his brother will drop the subject, which he did. “Anyway, first things first: another person went missing. Maybe there are more wendigoes around here.” Gabriel groaned. “Come on, you saw that two burning and disappearing, and you tell me that there are more of those things?” Seth nodded. “I can’t be sure that they’re dead though.” he added.

Gabriel wasn’t relieved. He had a hard time wrapping his head around the whole wendigo thing to be honest. “How… What even are these creatures?” he asked. Seth sat down, and looked at the journal on the table. “Wendigo are spirits of people who committed something horrible, and it disturbed their very core, resulting in this monstrosity.” Gabriel cast him a dirty look. “Less drama, more sense.” he said. “Wendigo are undead creatures, that were once humans, who resorted to cannibalism.” Seth repeated. Gabriel shuddered. “You mean…” Seth sighed. “I keep forgetting that you’re new to this.” he carried on with a tired tone, like he was explaining this for the hundredth time. “Yes, they eat human flesh. Yes, they are undead. Yes, they exist. And yes, I have met one before, and it almost killed me.” Gabriel kept on staring at his brother like he was some stranger. “And how did you defeat it?” he asked. Seth’s gaze hardened. “I didn’t.” he answered. “Someone saved my life. And don’t ask me how he did that, because I don’t know.” Gabriel turned away, looking out the window. “Well, I guess we’ll have to be more careful then.” he said.

They spent the rest of the day with another search party, questioning the missing journalist’s neighbours, trying to find out where she was going. Gabriel felt he was in a haze, barely listening to the people answering him. His mind was occupied with finding a method of coping with everything he has seen and heard the last few days. Gale and Seth both told him things that would make any sane individual call the ambulance or the nearest asylum for the mentally ill. He knew his brother was an inmate in one, so he might be just making things up… Then again, he could no longer deny what he saw himself. No matter how much he tried to rationalize, he couldn’t explain a seven feet tall cannibalistic monster with glowing eyes.

Seth was worried. He had a sense of something being wrong, ever since he set foot in his hometown again. The missing journalist was a sign of something even worse. He didn’t know how many of the monsters were running around Morton, but he knew he can’t just sit around idly. When the questions and searching yielded no results, he sat in the Mustang, and was about to go back to the abandoned old shack in the woods. Gabriel opening the door to the shotgun seat and sitting next to him made him change his plans though. “Well, I guess I owe you an apology.” the younger brother started. “I think I forgot to tell you about the appointment I made with Gale. We should go and see her.” Seth flashed a dirty look at his brother, but started the engine. “What do you hope to accomplish with going to her place and talking with her?” he asked Gabriel after a short pause. “I don’t know.” the younger Remington confessed. “Maybe I just want to have answers, kind of closure.” Seth let out a sound that resembled a short, bitter chuckle. “Forgive me brother dear, but I highly doubt that we’ll have that kind of experience.” He commented. They arrived at the lonely house at the other end of town. Gale was waiting for them, which made Seth feel even more uncomfortable. It was almost like coming home. Except that his home was now a small space on four wheels, and the highway. “I was afraid that you will not even show up.” Gale joked, as she shepherded the two young men inside. Seth looked back at the empty field near Gale’s house, and locked the door behind him.

“So you came here to ask about Samantha?” Gale asked, while she looked at Gabriel, and tried to ignore his brother, who was circling around her like a humanoid shark. “Can you tell us about her? Like how you knew each other?” Gabriel asked back. Gale nodded. “We decided to keep it a secret from her family, because she didn’t want you to live the life she had to.” Seth stopped, and stood behind his brother, looking down on the small woman intimidatingly. “What do you mean?” he asked with a hint of a threat in his voice. Gale smiled and tilted her head to look into the cold eyes of the older brother. “Samantha and I were members of the same coven. She was a witch… Or rather a pyromancer, because she had an affinity for fire, which you inherited from her.” Gabriel looked up at Seth, but the other man’s features were the same expressionless mask he wore when they listened to the family’s lawyer reading their father’s will. “It manifested very early in you, Seth.” Gale carried on “You were only two years old when you got so scared of a lightning storm one night, that you literally set your room in flames. Tell me dear, did it happen often with you after you got back from the asylum?” Seth’s grip on the backrest of Gabriel’s chair became tighter, and his knuckles went white, but his voice was cold like a blizzard when he answered. “It’s none of your concern. I had some hallucinations, but they’re gone.” Gale’s smile never disappeared. “Is that true? I saw how you dealt with the wendigo in the old shack.” Gabriel looked up at his brother in disbelief. “Was that you?” Seth didn’t answer him, just stared at Gale. “I mean no harm.” she stated again. “You have great potential, and a power that is dangerous, especially if you can’t control it.” Seth stayed quiet, and Gabriel turned back to Gale. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.” he said, and reached up behind his shoulder to try and calm Seth, or at least get his hands off from the chair that threatened them to break in the taller man’s steely grip. “I’m sorry, I forgot that you know nothing about Samantha’s so-called secret life. She did a good job sheltering you from our kin, that’s for certain.” Gabriel buried his face in his palm, as he listened to something he was better off not knowing about. “When I first met her, Samantha Remington – her maiden name was Jade, and she was not yet married to your father then – was an outcast. A witch on a self-imposed exile, out here in the middle of nowhere, engaged to a mere human, unaware of her true nature. I was sent here, to keep an eye on her, and try to convince her to return to our coven. But she didn’t want that. You must know that witches are at war with many creatures, but more importantly, they are at war with themselves. The various factions between covens, the various covens from various countries and states, they are all hostile to one another. Our small group of magic women needed every soul we had. Your mother never told me what happened to her, but she wanted to remain hidden from her sisters, and chose to live the life of an ordinary human.”

Gabriel shook his head, and was about to stand up and leave, but his brother finally let out a sigh, and asked “Why are you so sure that we got whatever so-called “powers” our mother had? Also, if she knew about it, why did she keep it a secret from us?” Gale shrugged. “It is not my place to judge that.” she answered. Gabriel stood up. “Well, it was a nice tale, but I’m afraid I’m too old for the likes of it.” Even though he seemed calm and understanding, he felt what he heard was just too much. He couldn’t even get over the wendigo he saw, and then hearing a weird story about his mother being a witch… Seth on the other hand, seemed to ease up a bit, and Gabriel could see the change in his demeanour from suspicious to inquiring. “Just how long these “witch-wars” were going on?” he asked. “For centuries.” Gale replied. “I don’t know who was the first, and how it came to be, but ever since there are people, there are people with abilities like yours. They were once the leaders or seers, sought for their wisdom. Right until the era that is known now as “the dark ages”. Religion took a dark turn to fanatism, and became the undoing of our society. Many witches were killed during that time, among many ordinary people. The wars began when two of the great dynasties had disagreed on the methods of ending the witch-hunters’ reign of terror. One faction wanted to hide, and coexist with mundane humans, and wait until the herd thinks we’re gone. The other faction wanted to fight back. By any means necessary. These are the witches from your childhood horror tales. The ones that revive the dead. The ones that summon demons from the deepest pit of hell to sic them on whoever they choose. The ones that abuse their power.” Gabriel rolled his eyes, and leaned to the wall. Seth occupied his empty seat. “The differences between various witch dynasties have been swept under the rug recently.” Gale continued “We had to face a bigger common enemy, and that led to a truce. Your mother helped me out on more than one occasion, but she always asked me not to let anyone of our kind know about it.” she sighed. “When you were born, she was so happy, and scared at the same time.” Seth raised his brow. “Why?” Gale held his hand. “She knew that you were special. Both of you.” she glanced over to Gabriel. “She wanted a so-called normal life, free from feuds and hunters, who would gladly kill you in your cribs just because you were children of a witch. She wanted to protect you.” Seth pulled his hand away. “I see.” he commented on a neutral tone. “That’s why she never told father about it.” “She pretty much lived a double life.” Gale answered. “But she put her own powers to good use. This town is plagued by what mundane humans call “supernatural events”. She did her best to keep many malevolent entities and monsters away, but as you clearly saw, the barrier she created fell down with her death.”

“Do you know about the wendigo?” Seth asked, and Gale frowned. “Sadly yes. Though I thought we got rid of it decades ago. Your mother sealed it away, literally banned it from this plane of existence. The spell probably lost its effect after she was gone.” “What if I’d say that she’s gone _because_ of the wendigo?” Seth said. “It is possible.” Gale stated after a short pause. “Maybe it found a way to set itself free from the spell… Or someone else became one after some horrible events.” Gabriel chose this moment to angrily shake his head and sit back next to his brother. “We know that there are at least two of these… things. What if there are more? How do we seal them away?” Gale shook her head. “You’re not strong or skilled enough to do that yet. It is a complicated ritual, and takes days to prepare to.” “So what should we do?” Seth asked, while he leaned back. “I can help you learn to control your own powers, and in the meantime, give you some tokens to place around the town and nearby abandoned places, to ward them against the wendigo.” Gabriel buried his face in his palms, while Seth objected. “That’s not enough. We still have missing people around, maybe they have fallen victim to the wendigo, so we must find them.” Gale looked at him with a sad expression. “They’re probably already dead now. Forget about them.” “Hell no.” Gabriel’s voice was strict and determined. “I don’t care about that bad dark fantasy crap that’s going on, I will not let someone die horribly so we’ll have time practicing how to properly wave a magic wand.  You think I’m not skilled enough? I’ve been a scout when I was a kid, and helped out the rangers in more than one search ever since my high-school years. I’m going to find that journalist, and pray that there will be no more disappearances in the meantime, whether you help us or not.” Gale made a confused expression, while Seth smiled under his nose. “Very well.” the witch stated. “Seth! Come with me, you are the easier case.” she stood up, and the brothers followed her outside, where she pointed at a pile of wood. “Torch that!” Seth looked at her, then at the logs, and laughed. “I can’t.” Gale shook her head. “Yes, you can.” the older Remington furrowed his brow. “How?” “Tell me, how do you feel right before everything suddenly goes up in flames around you?” Gale asked. Seth was thinking for a moment before answering “Angry. Scared. Excited or even sad. I can’t control it.” Gale pointed at him. “That is what you need to use. Anger is a good start.” she held her palm up, and suddenly a small flame appeared on it. She closed her fingers, and it was gone. “You’re a pyromancer, like your mother was. You can control fire, and it doesn’t burn you. Don’t be afraid of it, use it!”

Seth exhaled and stared at the pile of logs in front of him. His mind was processing everything he heard from Gale, and he felt the rage and sadness of the past days and what he felt hearing his father’s will, that declared him as an exile. The familiar warmth began to build up inside until it was too hot to bear, and flames started to appear on his arms, legs, shoulders. He held up his hand, and the flames wandered into his palm, forming a bigger fire. It wanted to consume something. Seth turned his eyes and hand towards the log pile, and the fire, like it was a sentient creature, set it ablaze. Seth felt a bit dizzy but proud. He turned to Gale, who clapped her hands. “Not bad for a start. Better be aware though, your clothes aren’t immune to fire.” Seth looked down on his arm again, and cursed when he saw what remained of the sleeve of his leather jacket. “Now, about you…” Gale turned to Gabriel “I cannot say I’m positive about you being a pyromancer. Only that you too inherited some magical power. Tell me, did you ever experience anything out of the ordinary? Even when your brother was gone?” Gabriel slowly shook his head. “Nothing…” He wasn’t exactly telling the truth though, and he knew that Gale sees through him. “Well… I did something once…” he stuttered. “I could shape water however I wanted to, and I made rainbows in summer with spraying water everywhere.” he smiled sheepishly. “Not like it’s a big thing, or out of the ordinary…” Gale snickered. “Forgive me for asking, but when were you born exactly?” Gabriel didn’t have a clue about why she asked that, but he answered “March 15th, 1986. Why?” The witch dug up a small calendar from her pocket, and was examining it for a short while before exclaiming. “Aha! I knew it!” Gabriel had a bad feeling. “Knew what?” Gale put her calendar away, and shepherded Gabriel back to the room, and she gave him a glass of water. “Umm… Thank you, but I’m not really thirsty.” he objected, which made Gale roll her eyes. “No, silly. This is for practicing purposes.” “Practicing what?” Gale felt like she will have a long night. “You’re probably a hydromancer. According to your birth date, your sign is Pisces, which is connected to the water element. It usually means nothing, but it can indicate a witch’s inclination towards specific elements.” Gabriel looked down into the glass and felt the small amount of water move. He didn’t even lift his hand.

He tried to concentrate on it, but was terrified when the water squirmed out from the glass like a transparent worm. Gabriel’s concentration broke, and the spell failed, spilling water on the table. “Oh my, I’m so sorry!” he exclaimed, and tried to wipe the liquid off. “No problem, son. You just spilled a glass of water, it isn’t the end of the world.” Gale smiled. “It’s surprising how powerful both of you are though.” Seth stepped in, and exchanged a look with Gabriel. “And can we use it against the wendigo?” the older brother asked. “As far as I know they don’t like fire.” Gale was thinking. “You can kill them with fire, but you must contain the spirits somewhere, or else they will haunt the place, looking for another suitable vessel. I can make some items that can bind a spirit to it, and you can carry it with you when you go to look for the missing person.” Gabriel nodded. “Oh sure… We can run around with some dried lizard tails and eye of newt, no problem.” Seth nudged him. “I think we should check the old mines out. As far as I know these creatures hang out in abandoned and dark places.” he said. Gabriel looked at his brother with a frown. “Do we must?” Seth smiled at him. “No, you can stay at home if you want, Pansy. Of course we must, if we want to find the missing journalist, and put an end to the disappearances, that probably thanks to the wendigo nest somewhere around Morton.”

Gale was looking at the arguing brothers for a short while before ending the fight. “All right, here’s what we’re going to do: You go home now, and come back tomorrow. I will make the necessary items for you to bind the wendigo’s spirits, and the tokens that you need to renew the wards around Morton. In the meantime, do a little research, and see what you can find about the creatures, or about strange and unsolved death cases in town. That will be something productive, and you don’t even have to endanger yourselves. You can re-join the search party after we’re done.” The two men exchanged glances, then nodded. “Fine then. See you tomorrow!” Gale said goodbye, then let the brothers go back to the old black Mustang. Seth started the engine, and looked at Gale’s form in the rear-view mirror, getting smaller with the growing distance.

“So? What do you think?” he asked his younger brother, who seemingly had a hard time getting his thoughts together. Gabriel was looking out the window in silence, only looking at Seth when he sighed and turned the radio on. “I don’t know what to think anymore.” he confessed, interrupting _The Who_ ’s “Baba O’Riley”. “Right until tonight, my life had a sense of rationality, or reason if you will.” He swiped a stray lock of his long, strawberry blond hair out of his face. “But now I feel like I’ve lost my mind.” Seth gave a mirthless chuckle. “Welcome to the club!” he sneered. “I was wondering what Gale’s agenda might be.” Gabriel shrugged. “I have no idea. But I’m sure as hell that I won’t let her under my skin. I have a feeling she’s up to no good.” Seth kept his eyes on the road, but he hummed and added “I’m not so sure about that now. I mean… she _is_ willing to help us out. If she would be against us, why would she want to teach us how to use our abilities? We could be a bigger threat to her if we’re more skilled than now, when we barely have any idea of what we’re doing…” Gabriel made a protesting sound, and waved. “Seth, please… I need some time to process the things that were just poured down on me today. I have to believe that witches and wendigo are real, and we both can manipulate elements by our will. It requires me to lose all sense of rationality I had to develop as an adult, and especially as a teacher. So just please… leave me be for a while.”

* * *

_March 30. 2006._

 

The next day found Gabriel watching the news and drinking his morning tea like everything was normal. He needed that to avoid going insane. Seth went out to re-join the search party, and to visit Gale and collect the various trinkets he needed to place in the forest, and around the city. It took him almost all day. Gabriel didn’t even leave the couch. When his brother returned, he found the younger Remington with his laptop, searching for clues he might find. Needless to say, his Googling yielded no results. “Get up and let’s go.” Seth said, closing the lid of the laptop. “I’m done with the warding, so all we have are the mines.” Gabriel lowered his head and groaned. “Why can’t we just go hiking, or hit a bar or wherever you want to hang out, instead of going into an old, dangerous and abandoned mine?” “Have you forgotten?” Seth answered “We are about to help the rangers and the sheriff find a missing person.” Gabriel stood up and rolled his eyes. “It was a rhetorical question, dumbass.” Seth sneered at him. “There’s going to be rough terrain, so dress accordingly, sunshine!” Gabriel gave him the finger and left for his room to change. He came back a few minutes later, while Seth scrolled through the map depicting the nearby region. He looked at his brother, and noticed a few of his own clothing items. “So that’s where my old t-shirts and jackets are now.” he commented. “Did you even leave anything in my closet?” Gabriel flashed a smile at his older brother and answered “Yeah, I left your underwear and your torn jeans, because I don’t like those. Your welcome.” Seth cast a dirty look at him, but dropped the subject. “So, we’re about to enter the old mine, just east of here.” he informed Gabriel, while starting the engine. “While you were dressing up in your stolen goods, I packed some stuff that might be helpful.” Gabriel glanced at the backseat, like he hoped to see through it into the car’s trunk, but he rather turned back to his brother. “I have a feeling that this will be a long night.” he sighed.

The chain holding the gate to the old mine closed fell on the ground with a rattling sound as Seth cut it. Gabriel stood behind his brother with a flashlight. “Are you sure this is a good idea?” he asked, looking around nervously. “We’re breaking into an area that’s off limits. We could get in trouble because of it.” Seth shrugged. “I’ll ask the sheriff to add it to my list.” He went back to his car with Gabriel on his tail, who still shook his head indignantly. The Mustang’s headlights illuminated the gaping maw of the former mine’s entrance, as they drove behind the fence, and stopped. The air was heavy, and a storm was brewing in the mountains. Gabriel looked at the dark hole on the mountain’s wall they were about to enter, and found himself holding on to the car’s door. “Are you really sure that we must look around in there?” he asked. “Stop it already, Mr. Whiny McWhiner!” Seth grumbled. “You’re making a tantrum like when you were five. Go home if you want to, I’ll search the mines alone.” Gabriel didn’t want to imagine what can happen to his brother if he ends up going into the mines alone, so he objected. “I’ll go with you. It’s just… I’m not used to going into all kinds of spooky places, like you apparently do.” Seth looked at him with a puzzled expression, then he nodded. “Right. Open the trunk, and get the radio and the tokens!” Gabriel obeyed, but he couldn’t help but take a good look at all the various ritualistic and weapon-like items he found hidden in his brother’s car. “You know, if someone would do a thorough search in this vehicle, you’d be in deep trouble, brother dear.” Seth’s self-assured smile indicated that he probably got away with some of the aforementioned searches. Gabriel took a crowbar in case he needs to use something as a weapon, or if there are boarded up or locked places inside the mine. He also put the radio they got from the sheriff to his pocket, next to his flashlight.

“All right, ready to go in.” Gabriel sighed. Seth nodded, and turned his own flashlight on. The old tunnel was damp, with water flowing from the walls, gathering into small pools on the ground. Abandoned and rusty equipment littered the groove, all that remained after the mining company emptied and closed the property. Some chains still hung from the ceiling, some of them swung by some unidentified source of wind. The place was warm, too warm for an out of order mine. Gabriel quickened his pace to keep up with Seth, who looked around and followed a pair of rails, that led deeper into the bowels of the Earth.

“What makes this heat?” Seth mused, looking around in the cave they arrived at the end of the groove. It was big, and had many workstations and a boarded up shaft. The two men followed the rails down to the cave, and searched the place for anything that might provide a clue for the whereabouts of the missing person, or to the peculiar state of left behind equipment in the mine. Gabriel didn’t want to stray too far from his brother, he always kept Seth in his line of sight. The air was heavy, and damp. He had a bad feeling he couldn’t quite explain. Like something was about to happen, and he was helplessly waiting for it. Sometimes they heard noises, like pebbles falling from somewhere, or an unidentified shriek that could be anything from a swarm of bats to an army of undead cannibals. Gabriel was about to go over to his brother and tell him that he doesn’t like the tension in the air, when he spotted something for a moment above Seth’s head. It was a vaguely humanoid figure, with two glowing red spots instead of eyes. It lashed out in the same second Gabriel took breath to warn his brother. The creature’s clawed hands grabbed Seth, and it lifted the significantly larger man without effort, and the small beam of light directed at it from Gabriel’s flashlight didn’t even bother it. It dragged Seth away into a cavity, high on the cave wall, where Gabriel couldn’t climb. The last thing the younger Remington sibling heard was the distressed cry of his older brother. “There has to be another way somewhere…” he muttered, mainly to keep himself from panicking. “I have to find another way…” He was worried sick, and didn’t dare to think what he’ll find when - if ever – he finds the wendigo’s lair.

He wandered around in the dark and eerily quiet caverns, tunnels and even climbed up in a shaft, only to fall and hit his head. He didn’t know how much time had passed, and his anxiety only seemed to grow. Seth might be dead by now. Gabriel sat down on the floor, and used his scarf to stop the bleeding of his head wound. It wasn’t serious, but it kept bleeding and stuck his eye and his hair. He also started to realise that he got lost. He never saw the map of the mines, and now he was so deep in the complex system of grooves, tunnels and caverns, that he wasn’t sure that he could ever find the way out. A small voice inside told him that it might be for the better. His brother is dead already, and he might as well join him.

* * *

Meanwhile the Remington-siblings were helping out the search party in the mines, Gale rummaged through her various old tomes and the journals she and Samantha kept on writing, in case they need information on the various malevolent creatures lurking around town. She found a drawing of a tall, gaunt humanoid figure, wearing something like a deer’s skull on its head, making it look like it has antlers, with feet ending in claws that at first seemed to resemble hooves. It was the first wendigo Gale and her partner encountered. They even gave it a name. “Old Bone Gnawer”. Its existence dated back to the beginning of the then small town, with miners reporting strange sounds coming from the cinnabar mine’s deeper levels, and also loggers sometimes talked about a mysterious figure in the woods that made even them feel uneasy and reluctant to go into the forest alone. Then, somewhere in the late 1800’s, a hunter and his son went missing. They were never found. The only thing left of them was a run-down shack, restored into its former glory in the early 1930’s, to be deserted again by mysterious circumstances in the 1950’s. The same shack the Remingtons found the dead deputy sheriff in. And the same shack the wendigo used as a secondary lair. Gale tried to estimate how many of the monsters could be dwelling in the mines and the woods, but she came to a rather terrifying conclusion. With all the mysterious death cases throughout history, and the seldom missing strangers’ cases, Morton’s wendigo population might be higher than she initially thought. She wanted to warn the brothers of it, but none of them answered their phones. Gale took a deep breath, and went to the sheriff’s station. She wasn’t sure about what will she say, of course, she wasn’t going to tell the authorities that cannibalistic monsters are lurking around in the woods, so they better be careful, but she wanted to do something to prevent the already large number of wendigo from growing even more. “Miss Grey! Can I help you?” the voice of the old sheriff woke Gale from her thoughts. “Actually, I was wondering if I can help with something.” she smiled faintly. “Well, we have more than enough people in the search party, so I’m afraid you can’t. At least not with that.” He answered. “Then what is it that I can help with?” Gale asked, her smile becoming a bit forced and her stance tense. “I’ve seen you around them Remington boys lately.” the sheriff replied. “And you might can help us with telling us what do you know about the older one. It seems like he has a nice little list of crimes back in Seattle, so if he ever returns, I shall have a little chat with him myself.”

 

He felt a hand brushing his hair from his face. Someone whispered words he couldn’t understand, but his numbness gave way to consciousness, and the pain he felt in his bones. Seth groaned and tried to sit up. He was startled by an unknown voice which exclaimed “Oh, you’re alive!”. Seth looked around, and saw some bones scattered around, and a large machine, still operating, also the frame of a small and weathered woman, looming over him. “I… I thought you were dead… like the others.” she muttered, which Seth barely could hear over the loud sound the machine made. “Are you Sarah Armstrong?” he managed to ask after a few moments. The woman nodded. “How do you my name?” she asked. Seth scoffed. “The whole blasted town is looking for you. I’m a member of a search party.” She suddenly put her hand on his mouth. “Sshh! They’re here…” she whispered, and Seth immediately remembered that they are in a mine filled with wendigo. Probably hungry wendigo. He nodded, and gestured for Sarah to release him, which she did. “We have to get out of here.” he whispered. Sarah looked over to the loud machinery, and shook her head. “No. we are safe here. We shall wait until the rest of the rescue team finds us.” Seth looked at her like she was out of her mind which, given the circumstances, might even be true. “They would never find us here. But the monsters will, if we don’t get on our feet, and get moving.” Sarah looked over him. “Yours look pretty bad though.” she said. Seth checked himself for injuries, and found that she was right about his legs. His right ankle was probably disjointed, but not broken, and the other had only surface wounds. “Help me put my foot back in place, and I might be able to walk.” he stated. It was a bold statement, but he knew he had a pretty high pain tolerance, so he wanted to give it a shot. “I’m no nurse…” Sarah objected. “I might do more damage than what’s already done.” Seth grumbled something in response, which she didn’t understand. “I said, either that, or we’ll be wendigo food.” he repeated after her inquiry. “How do you know what these creatures are?” she asked, while she tore Seth’s t-shirt apart to make a sort-of bandaging from it. He took his hoodie and jacket back, while contemplating what to answer. “It’s sort-of my field of expertise.” he explained and suppressed a yowl as she relocated his ankle to its proper place, and began to bandage it. “I’m a paranormal investigator.” She started to laugh. “Sorry, it’s just… Aren’t all those so-called paranormal shows fake?” Seth’s expression hardened, as he attempted to stand up. “Yep, the TV shows are indeed fake, but I never said I’m in one. And these things that almost killed us? They’re real.” Sarah helped him to his feet, which made him snarl and suppress another painful groan, as his right foot was anything but suitable for walking on. “I will need your help.” he stated. “I will not leave.” she answered. “These creatures see heat. As long as we’re near the machines, they can’t see us.” Seth wanted to tell her that her logic bleeds from many wounds, but he also realised something. “I can distract them.” he said. “How?” Sarah asked. “Don’t mind, you’ll see when we’ll need it.” he answered, and even gave a faint smile. She shook her head but wrapped her arm around his waist, and supported Seth as they took their leave of the human bone-littered cave, back into the tunnels.

* * *

 

 Gabriel was sneaking his way over a rusty bridge. Below him the tunnel was teeming with wendigo. The creatures’ rapid, insect-like movement and periodical shrieking made his blood freeze and he stopped, trying to melt into the wall whenever he got too close to any of them. Gabriel never knew what ungodly luck befallen him on his way out of there, but even that luck couldn’t last forever. A creature, a large one stood in his way on the end of the bridge, and gave that high-pitched, inhuman wail, that alarmed the whole nest. Gabriel muttered a curse, and tried to turn back, only to find three other creatures climbing up to him on the wall. The sinewy hands and skull-like heads of the wendigo appeared above the edge of the bridge, when Gabriel felt the air cool down drastically. He got cornered by the monsters, but was too afraid to even notice. His breath made small clouds, and frost ran up the walls all around. The slow drops of water that kept dripping from the ceiling froze. Gabriel felt like even time itself has frozen, as the four wendigo leapt on him. He heard himself scream, and shut his eyes, as the final defence against the horror which was about to end him, but then… nothing happened. The tunnel was cold. Colder than before. Gabriel opened his eyes, and saw the gaping maw of a wendigo, frozen in motion, only inches away from his face. The other three also stood like un-living statues made of ice. Gabriel slowly snuck his way out from the cave, over the bridge, and directed his flashlight into the other groove, waiting for him to get lost in.

“Do you have any idea, where are we going?” Sarah asked, dragging Seth out from his pain induced haze. “North of here.” he managed to answer “There should be an elevator we can use to get out of the mine.” He hoped he remembers correctly, and they won’t have to go around the dark and dangerous tunnels until they accidentally stumble into a wendigo or a way out. “What was that sound?” Sarah asked after a while. Seth stopped and listened, to hear what the woman was talking about. There was a sound, vaguely human, mixed with an angry animal. High-pitched and terrifying. Seth didn’t say a word, but nudged Sarah to walk faster. She didn’t need an explanation. In the end they were almost running, as much as Seth’s injured leg allowed them. They heard the creatures wailing and the sound their claws made as they were following the two humans on the walls of the tunnel. Sarah tripped in a stone and almost fell over, dragging Seth with her. “You said you have something to distract them!” she said. Seth stood up, and positioned himself between Sarah and the incoming pack of monsters. “I have.” he answered on a grim tone. “Close your eyes!” She obeyed, then felt something hot near her, like she was sitting next to a bonfire. Sarah opened her eyes, and screamed. The man next to her was a human torch, with flames licking all over his arms, shoulders, legs and head. Then she saw the wendigo coming their way, following the heat. Seth then extended his arm, and the fire – like it had a mind of its own – went over to his hand, then formed a ball which flew and set one of the creatures ablaze. The others attacked it immediately, disregarding the fact that they themselves caught in flames. Seth leaned down and helped Sarah up. “Come on! I can’t do this trick again for a while!”

They arrived at a large hollow, with some of the machinery and rubble on the floor. A large elevator in a chainlink cage stood at the far end of the cave, and the pair stopped to check if it’s still in working condition. It needed a switch to be turned to restore power to the lift. “We’re trapped.” Sarah sighed, and sat down in the cage. Seth shook his head, and reached into his pocket. He gave the radio to Sarah. “Take this. I’ll go and pull the switch, so you can go outside and get the sheriff to send help.” The journalist blinked and began to object. “No, no I can’t. You will be stuck here, with those monsters!” Seth made a faint smile. “I can handle myself. Besides, I have to find my brother. He’s still down here somewhere.” With that, he limped over to the switch, and pulled it, making the old elevator shake and grumble, but the lights on it flashed and it was ready to go up to the surface. Sarah looked down as she was lifted from the living nightmare she was trapped in for more than a day. She tightened her grip on the radio, and watched as Seth’s figure disappeared from her sight.

* * *

After the cold was replaced by the damp, stale air of the tunnels, Gabriel sighed. He didn’t want to stop, but he was getting tired. He ran for the most part of the last hour, and even though he was in a good condition, he had trouble breathing in the thin air of the mine. He leaned to the wall, and nearly fell asleep, when he saw light from the other tunnel, parallel to the one he was in, accessible through a hole. He peeked out from his hiding place, but saw only a pair of burning wendigo, which were motionless, and emitted a stench Gabriel couldn’t stand for long. He ran past the creatures, only to see a fog-like thing beginning to follow him, one from each carcass. Gabriel ran as fast as he could, but the spirits were faster…and left him alone in the tunnel. He slowed down, and continued his journey in the tunnel, until he arrived to the same elevator shaft, his brother and Sarah did only an hour ago. Gabriel pushed the button on the elevator, but nothing happened. He saw the switch, and pulled it, only to completely turn the power off. He cursed, then tried to pull the switch again, when he heard a small noise. He turned around and tried to hide, but the figure he saw did not belong to an undead monstrosity. Seth limped his way back to the elevator, a bit burned and torn, but otherwise fine. Gabriel suddenly felt relief and forgot that they are still might be in danger. He ran to his brother and hugged him, nearly knocking him off of his feet. “Where the hell have you been?” Seth asked when his younger brother finally let him go. “Me?” Gabriel asked back indignantly. “You were dragged away by a wendigo, and I thought you were dead!” Seth just stared at him for a moment, and began to laugh nervously. “Sorry.” he said. “I found Sarah. She’s already outside, I sent her to get the sheriff and send help. We could do the cleansing ritual in the meantime.” Gabriel shook his head. “The what? No way I’m doing any voodoo in this god-forsaken hellhole. Come here, I’ll help you, just let’s get the hell out of here!” “We have to.” Seth only answered these three words. He pulled the small token out from his pocket, and put it to the ground. “We killed the monsters, but their spirits still roam free. We have to seal them or more people will get hurt.” Gabriel nodded. He didn’t need any more coercion to help his brother draw a circle on the ground, and make a pattern from various occult symbols, the same way Gale had shown him. Seth muttered some words Gabriel didn’t understand, but he saw those fog-like creatures gathering around. They occupied the token one by one. After the ritual was done, the brothers waited in the dead silence. An hour passed, then another. “She’s not coming back.” Gabriel said after a while. “It’s up to us, to find a way outside.” Seth nodded. He was unusually silent, and when he helped him up, Gabriel noticed the sizeable swelling of his right ankle. “Dammit, you can’t climb with that!” he commented. Seth sighed. “I don’t have to. Help me get the elevator down!” 

It was almost dawn when the brothers emerged from the mine. The whole search party was there, this time looking for them. Sarah did her best to rally the sheriff’s troops and told him about her rescue. Gabriel felt touched for a moment, but then the police circled around them. “Seth Remington, drop any weapons you have, and come with us! You are under arrest.” Gabriel didn’t understand a thing. They saved a life, and his brother was in jail again. He drove home with the Mustang, following the trucks and SUVs, one of them carrying Seth to the sheriff’s office. They didn’t want him to come, but didn’t forbid him to, so he took a turn after the small convoy. He was held back by a woman in a uniform, telling him to sit down and wait. “He didn’t do anything!” Gabriel protested. “Why are you arresting him?” The woman - as Gabriel noticed, she was the new deputy – sighed. “Mr. Remington, your brother is not charged with anything yet. It all depends on how well he can weave his words and convince the sheriff that his nice, long list of crimes won’t be lengthened with a few additional missing people cases.” Gabriel was livid. The deputy – her name was Reese, as he could read it – tried to calm him by telling him that it is standard procedure. After a long hour of talking and reasoning, Gabriel saw Seth limping out from the interrogation room, accompanied by a policeman, who helped him go his way over to his brother. “Can we go home now?” he asked. Gabriel nodded. The brothers left the station, followed by the puzzled looks of both the old sheriff, and his new deputy.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- Oh look! A universe, where astrology is actually useful!  
> \- Also, "wandering around in abandoned mines beacuse reasons": Morton IRL had (or still has) cinnabar mines, which I found no data on being still working or not. For the story's purposes, there is at least one mine that is exhausted, and no longer used. 
> 
> On another note, I did some scrolling through the "Original work" section of the site, and... you know, after all the sick and perverted s**t I found, I'm not surprised that people are reluctant to read anything labelled as "Original work". -_- As much as I understand the site's will to include any and all kinds of writings, there should be lines not to be crossed, or at least an option to report offensive stuff. I'm probably on the unpopular opinion here though, so I drop the subject. (But really, aren't there anything about that in the Terms of Service?)
> 
> Still with me? Let me know what you think! (Not necessarily about the Original Work section or AO3's so-called policies, but I'm up to defend my opinion against anyone. :D )
> 
> Next case: The spirit of Seth's deceased high-school sweetheart comes back to haunt him and many more in Morton. Gale helps her new apprentices find a strong, but a bit dangerous way of expelling her for good.


	4. High School Sweethearts Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of Seth's old friends and former mentor, John Bull asks for his help with a case he was working on, but unable to finish because he ended up in jail. The Remington brothers meet John's son Matt, who is pretty unfriendly with them, but willing to fill them in with information regarding his father's last case. A ghost is wreaking havoc among the people it knew in life, and it is also somehow related to the brothers...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> I'm back again with another chapter because I felt like writing about my second favourite paranormal investigator pair of brothers. :D  
> Trigger warnings for this chapter include coarse language (come on, you know me!), some twisted folklore, prejudice (and some pride). Proceed at your own risk!

Also, for you music enthusiasts out there, I have a playlist that goes with this story: [PD Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0kTwJffd-LHFEPoiFi_QSVTDUpMYuQ3m)

Sorry for the spam, let us carry on.

* * *

_May 3. 2006._

 

Seth scribbled some notes into his mother’s journal, while indignantly sighing. More than a month has passed since the wendigo case, and he was more than eager to leave town, but Gabriel always found something to keep him from going away.  Sometimes he couldn’t find the Mustang’s keys, sometimes the car’s newly fixed parts suddenly ceased to function… He suspected foul play from his brother’s part. He finished his notes and closed the journal, to go and look for Gabriel, who was nowhere to be seen all day. He found him out in the backyard, his long hair tied into a loose ponytail, pulling weed. “There you are!” Seth commented, getting a startled look from his brother. “Just what in the world are you doing?” Gabriel patted his hands to the sleeves of his pants then walked over to Seth. “Well brother dearest, I’m gardening. What, you thought the weed will magically disappear overnight? Also, someone has to do all the household chores _someone else_ doesn’t want to.” he explained. Seth raised his hands in defeat. “All right, all right. Do you need help with anything then?” Gabriel was about to answer, when both men spotted the woman in uniform approaching. “Morning boys!” deputy Reese greeted them. “Sorry for barging in, but no one answered the door, and I heard you bickering out here.” she smiled. Gabriel furrowed his brow, and picked at the sleeve of his shirt. “What can we help you with, Officer?” Seth asked. “Well, I came to inform you that you are cleared from the list of suspects, so you’re free to travel, Mr. Remington.” Reese answered. Seth cast a triumphant look at his brother. “You heard the lady, now give me back my car keys! I’m outta here!”

Gabriel made a dirty look at his brother, but before he could answer, Reese interrupted. “Not so fast! You’re still under surveillance for your criminal record and also because of your mental health issues.” Seth made a perplexed expression. “Excuse me, what? You mean I still can’t leave town?” Reese shook her head. “You can leave town, but have to check back at least once a month, to our psychiatrist at the local hospital. Sorry about that, it wasn’t my idea.” Seth had a suspicion who to thank this, but he frowned and unlike every other time, he accepted his fate. “Looks like I will wear out my welcome then, Little Brother.” he turned to Gabriel.  The latter wasn’t looking at him, but was very eager to escort deputy Reese to her patrol car. “Thank you.” he muttered when they reached the vehicle. “I know it’s not exactly in the law, also not your job, but I couldn’t find any other excuse to keep him here.” Reese patted his shoulder. “He’s a grown man, Gabriel. It might happen that he’ll wander off anyway.” Gabriel sighed. “I know, but…” he looked at Reese while trying to explain his conflicting thoughts and feelings to her. “He’s my only family. He’s annoying and I know we can’t stand each other for long periods of time, but still. I can’t afford to let him go, maybe never to return.” Reese nodded. “I understand. You know, I lost a brother when I was around your age. If I could go back, I would try everything to convince him to take a day off, or to change schedule with someone. Then again… That would be very selfish.”

Gabriel didn’t know what to say, so he stayed silent. Reese’s confession struck him, he didn’t know that about her. He didn’t really know about anything with regards to the town’s new deputy.

“I’m… I’m sorry for your loss.” he managed to add. “And I know I’m being selfish, but Seth is… You know he really does have a few loose screws, but he’s my only brother. And I have to look after him.” Reese nodded. “As I said, I understand. But please omit using other people to convince him to stay with you. He has a mind of his own, and unless you want him to be legally deemed mental, and placed under your care, you have to face the reality of him going his own way.” She said goodbye then drove off, leaving Gabriel with his troubled thoughts.

 

* * *

 

_May 4. 2006._

Seth was looking for spare parts to fix the Mustang, which was – again – magically malfunctioning. He walked downtown Morton, to the Northwest Home Center, to see if he can find anything useful there before turning to e-Bay as a last resort. Of course, he had to be disappointed. Walking quite a distance home, he went by the Bucksnort pub, and figured he permits himself a drink. He also was quite aware of the fact that he needs to find a paying job real soon. He sat down to the bar, and greeted Anne, who immediately went over to him. “Hey there, troublemaker!” she flashed a hundred Watt smile at him. “Wasn’t it like you drive away to the sunset right after your parents’ funeral?” Seth made a mirthless laugh. “It was, but sadly my car decided to die on me, so I’m stranded here until I fix it.” Anne shook her head. “It’s about time you get rid of that old crap. You have it since you were…what, fifteen?” Seth sighed. “Exactly. And that’s why I will never get rid of it. Call me old-fashioned, but I was raised in a sense that if something’s broken, fix it. People throw away everything and everyone so easily nowadays.” Anne patted his shoulder. “Welcome to the real world! Now, can I get you something?” Seth asked for a beer, and paid his tab as soon as he got it. He wasn’t going to spend more time in town then it was necessary. He promised himself that. He seemed cold and aloof on the outside, but inside he was literally itching to get away. And he didn’t know how to tell his brother that. Anne didn’t say a word to him for the remainder of his stay at the pub, she was quite busy with the other patrons. Seth looked at her smile, her laughter, even if someone told her something offensive, and felt a pang in his heart. He left half of his beer and went out the door.

Gabriel was worried, but didn’t say so, after he saw his brother walk into their front yard. “Any luck?” he asked and got a shrug as response. “I guess it’s a “no” then.” Seth went to his room, and ordered the necessary parts for his car, then went back to the living room, where his brother was sorting a pile of papers. “You need help with that?” he asked. Gabriel looked at him, and turned back to his work. “I could use another set of hands, thank you!” he said. “Categorize these by class, if I may ask!” Seth sat down next to him to the sofa, and helped organizing the papers which turned out to be tests from Gabriel’s class. “I still can’t wrap my head around that you’re a teacher.” he commented with a grin. “Well, at least one of us has to earn his wage in a decent way…” Gabriel riposted. “Right.” Seth grimaced. “If we’re at it, I think I found an ad that a programmer is needed in a small firm, located in Olympia.” he said, browsing through a particularly bad test. “You going to apply?” Gabriel asked, seemingly indifferent. Seth raised his head, and his brother did the same. “I can’t live off your good graces.” the older brother stated. “I’m running out of my reserved supplies, and if I want to avoid living inside a car for another eight or so years, I know I have to find a job that pays. Sadly, hunting for ghosts is not a lucrative endeavour.” Gabriel lowered his head. “Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way… Besides, you’re not living off on my good graces. This is your home too.” Seth snorted. “Dad would say otherwise.” Gabriel shoved his pile of tests to the coffee table indignantly. “Dad is not here anymore.” he told his brother. “He’s gone. Mom’s gone too.” all his frustration he felt because of the events of the past weeks started to take over his calm. “But I’m here, and If you want to stay here, you can. As long as you want. I told you that.” Seth put his share of papers down as well. “That’s it. I don’t want to stay. There’s nothing here for me.” Gabriel took the tests back, and turned away from his brother. “Then hit the highway and run away from reality! As you always do.” Seth stood up and went and locked himself up in his room. He was more than willing to leave Morton. Now if only his damned car would work!

* * *

 

_May 10. 2006._

They rarely spoke after their dispute a few days ago. Seth was looking for job ads, and in the meantime had some problems with his package, that got derailed or lost in delivery. He had to order everything again, but now at least he was assured that his order will be delivered in two days’ maximum. Gabriel kept on studying and helping out the local high-school on occasion, sometimes staying awake for long hours in the night to finish whatever test ranking or studies he had. Seth once again had to realise that they are two different worlds under the same roof. One night he opened his e-mails to see if there’s anything new. He had spam, some chain letters, and one written in code. He opened it, and after a few hours of work, he deciphered the letter. It was from a friend of his, who got himself in trouble. Seth felt like his prayers were answered. The next morning he got the parts from the mailman, and began to fix the Mustang one more time, and hoped against hope that it will work. Gabriel looked at him from the window, and felt his heart sink. He knew that if his brother is done fixing the old car, he’ll drive out of his life, and who knows when or if they’ll see each other again… He had to do something, and as much as his every cell rebelled against the idea, he felt like he has no other choice.

In the meantime, Gale was preparing a potion. She haven’t seen the Remington brothers for a long time now, and she started to wonder if there’s something wrong. She put the dried flowers and oils down, and went to her backyard. She had to remind herself that they are not her responsibility, and both brothers were grown men, with their own lives and problems. They weren’t keen on visiting her either, at least she didn’t even speak with them after their wendigo case. Which was also very suspicious in her eyes. As far as her knowledge went, wendigo weren’t native to those lands. They dwelled far up north, around the great lakes region, where the Cree people hailed from. So what was that creature doing here? For centuries even? As Gale kept on digging the ground, she saw the creature, and all the people it consumed. She knew the barrier she made and the spirits the boys sealed won’t last forever. She had to tell them to keep an eye out, but for that she would need to contact them, and she never asked for an exchange of phone numbers. She sighed, and stuck the shovel to the ground.

Seth felt like someone was watching him. He quickly lifted his head, resulting in bumping it into the engine-hood. He cursed, then turned around to see Gale standing in front of him. “Sorry, I wanted to call, but we never discussed correspondence.” she stated. Seth put the tools down and turned towards her. “We never discussed it because you disappeared after we dealt with the wendigo.” Gale tilted her head to look the significantly taller Seth in the eye. “I have a bad feeling, Seth.” she confessed. “Something’s about to happen, and it will have an impact in both of you.” Gabriel’s voice spoke from behind them out of the blue. “Did you see it in your crystal ball?” both the witch and his brother turned to face the younger sibling, casually sitting on the porch. “Come on, you know I need time to process all the Halloween crap that turned out to be real.” he commented. “So, why are you here all of a sudden, Gale?” She hesitated. “I can’t tell you anything specific.” she stated after a short pause. “But I sense something. Something bad. And it’s connected to both of you. I just came to warn you, that’s all.” Seth crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Well… Thanks I guess.” Gale didn’t move, and she still stared him in the eye. “You should have come over to me and practice. You pose a danger to yourself, and everyone else around you as long as you can’t control your gifts.” Gabriel didn’t answer, actually he was curious about what his brother has to say about that. Seth slowly nodded. “Right. Forgive us, but we had some family business to deal with, and I intend to leave town as soon as my old lady is road-worthy again.”

Gale was still looking at Seth, examining his features for a sign of his intentions, but the man’s face was like a mask. He was deliberately taking this neutral expression, that much Gale knew, and wanted to know why he had to develop such a defence mechanism. “I see.” she lowered her gaze. Seth turned away from her, but she called after him. “My predictions are usually correct.” It was time for Gabriel to stand up and slowly walk towards the witch. “Really? Then can you tell me the winning numbers of the lottery?” Gale sighed. “No, it’s not like that. I have only some impressions, a few pictures that might indicate what’s to come, not a clear message from the future.” Gabriel smiled and shook his head. “What a bunch of baloney.” Seth however was listening, as far as Gale could see. “All right.” he inserted before his brother could start preaching about reason, and the laws of the universe laid down by Science with a capital S. “What are your impressions, if it makes you so sure about that we’re in danger?” Gale once again looked Seth in the eye. “I saw your death. Your car crashed. Not here, far away. And you weren’t alone in it.” she struggled to move on, to tell him about her bad feeling about the wendigo as well, but she chose to remain silent. “Whatever may come, I would be glad to know a way to contact you.” she concluded her speech. Gabriel snorted. “Not like I haven’t call you at least twice. My phone number should be among your contacts.” Gale furrowed her brow. Shame or not, she wasn’t too adept with technology. She recited the last unknown phone number she had on her contact list, and Gabriel confirmed that it was his. Seth helped Gale to record it and name it properly before entering his own number to her phone. “As you said, whatever may come.” he added then turned back to fix his car. Gabriel said goodbye, and he went to hold a class in Morton Junior-Senior High School. Gale stood there for a while, eyeing the older Remington-sibling’s broad back as he was leaning into the engine of the old Mustang before speaking again. “He’s still in his dream world where everything has reason and logic, isn’t he?” Seth raised his head and looked at Gale over his shoulder. “I don’t blame him.” he answered. “It will take a lot of time for him to adapt. This is all new for him.” Gale nodded. “Can I convince at least you, to come over to my place and practice control over your pyrokinetic abilities?” Seth nodded. “I’ll drop by. But after I’m done fixing my sweetheart here…” he patted the car’s engine hood “…I’m out on the road, and won’t even look back.”

 

* * *

 

_May 12. 2006._

Seth was working hard to decipher their mother’s journals, and to update his own notes with knowledge from them. He was far from done fixing his car, and the past two days found him spending a lot of time at Gale’s residence. It was a short time, but he started to take baby-steps in the long road of understanding his ability. Gale also gave him a gift, a pendant on a thin metal necklace with a rune that means “Fire”. She told him it will help him focus his energy once he was wearing it for the appropriate time. Seth sighed, and donned his new trinket, being very curious about what his brother will say when he opens the small box containing his own, with the rune “Water” on it. Gabriel was worried about him, but now at least he knew what he was about to do. He took the necklace without as much as uttering a word, not to give Seth a reason to argue with him again. Besides, he found the gift’s design much to his liking. Whoever made it, clearly knew him or his taste. They still kept to themselves, barely exchanging words after their morning tea and coffee, former for Gabriel, latter for Seth. Both men wondered how long will this awkward silence last, while tending to their respective daily works. Gabriel went out, to help with one of his students, so he left his brother at home. He kind-of expected to see the house in ruins after coming home, but another surprise was waiting for him.

Anne Fields crossed the street to the Remington residence, and greeted Gabriel. “Hi, Gabe!” he was startled, but smiled and went over to her. “Hey, what a surprise! What can I do for you?” Anne bit her lower lip. “Is Seth still here?” she asked. Gabriel nodded. “Yes, he’s trying to fix the Mustang. Some sparking-plugs went off, and needs replacement. He’ll leave as soon as it’s fixed.” Anne smiled sadly. “I’m sorry. But it’s probably be the best.” Gabriel was silent for a moment, then before Anne could turn away, he reached out and held her hand. “Wait, could I ask you a favour?” Anne stopped, and looked back at Gabriel curiously. “Like what?” Remington leaned closer, and lowered his voice. “I need to go with Seth. He’s… unwell. Delusional, and after we found our mom’s secret hiding place in her office he’s obsessed with deciphering her journals written in code.” he let out a worried sigh. “I’m afraid I have to take him back to the St. Dympna and leave him there for another couple of years. Could you watch over the house while I’m away?” Anne nodded. “Of course.” she noticed Seth’s tall frame behind Gabriel. “Hello.” he greeted. Anne felt the need to flee. “Of course, I will come over and take a look at the house while you’re away. Have fun, you two!” after her hasty retreat, Seth looked at his brother questioningly. “I…um… I asked her to watch over the house after we are gone.” Seth tilted his head. “We?” Gabriel nodded. “I will go with you.” Seth chuckled, and shook his head. “I don’t remember you renting the shotgun-seat from me.” “Then I do it now.” Gabriel stated. “Listen, I just lost my parents a few months ago. I couldn’t bear losing you too.” seeing Seth’s piercing stare, he continued. “You were hurt, and under surveillance, and who knows what you get yourself into if I’m not around, so I’ll go with you. Like it or not.” Seth kept staring at his brother with his icy blue eyes, then shrugged. “Fine with me. I’m done patching up the old girl, so we’ll leave tomorrow.” he turned to his brother and squinted suspiciously. “Do you have any days off at all?” Gabriel shrugged. “I’ll manage.”

* * *

 

_May 13. 2006._

“So… Where are we going?” Gabriel asked closing the door behind him. “Hey, is there always a mess around here?” he asked, looking at the serious amount of garbage and scattered personal belongings of his brother. Seth was looking at a road map, connecting places with red lines, and answered without even looking up. “Order is for the weak. Geniuses can see through the chaos.” Gabriel laughed. “Suuure, Genius. Pray, tell me which one of us got the better degree at school?” Seth put down the map, and glanced at his younger brother. “Pray, tell me which one of us was always crying like a little girl and running away from bullies?” Gabriel raised his hands. “Touché. You still didn’t answer my question though.” Seth ignited the engine, and sighed. “Well, we have plenty of stuff to do around Morton. A wendigo, some ghosts, and other reported strange things happened ever since our mother decided to document them for some reason. But before I could do that, I need to see an old friend of mine in Seattle.” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Please tell me it’s not another delusional paranoid… I mean quote-unquote Paranormal Investigator.” Seth looked at him with an expressionless face. “Ha. Ha. Ha. Oh, you’re killing me, Gabriel.” he said sarcastically “When did you buy a personality? Did humor cost you some extra?” The black ’69 Mustang with the bantering brothers drove off to the damp, misty spring afternoon.

They were silent for a long while, before Seth got tired of it and turned the radio on. The familiar tunes of Skid Row’s “I Remember You” filled the car, and Seth caught Gabriel singing along, as they stopped at a red light leaving Elbe. Another car stopped next to them, filled with girls about a decade their junior, looking over to them and giggling. Gabriel smiled and continued to sing, while Seth felt embarrassed. Then the light turned green, and both cars went their separate ways. Somehow Seth couldn’t help but feel a certain familiarity and sadness, as they kept on going on road Nr.7. “What are you thinking about?” Gabriel asked when he got bored of singing along to almost each and every song that was played on the radio. “It’s nothing, I just…” Seth stuttered then sighed. “That damn song. It made me realise where we are.” Gabriel took the map and looked at it with a confused expression. “Um, we’re on National Park Highway, going around Alder Lake. Why?” Seth didn’t take his eyes off from the road. “You probably don’t remember, but I had an accident around here back then. Not long after I got home from the asylum.” Gabriel remembered it, despite being only 9 years old at the time. “Did it happen here?” he asked. His brother shook his head. “Not exactly. A bit far, near Rocky Point.”

Gabriel didn’t want to press Seth to talk about it, but it was unnecessary. After a short pause, and some significant speed loss, he carried on. “I had a girlfriend then, you know… Maggie Green.” Gabriel nodded, though he couldn’t really put a face to the name. He only saw the girl once or twice, and wasn’t too interested in his older brother’s love life at that time. “Shortly after I got this car, I offered a ride for Maggie, when she wanted to visit her grandmother in Tacoma, same where we are heading now, by the way.” Seth went on. “It was late after dark, and we were talking about some nonsense, and I wasn’t really paying attention to the road… Anyway. We were near the campground when a trailer came out of the blue, and the time I saw it, it was too late. We crashed into the trees.” Gabriel remembered what happened afterwards. “It wasn’t your fault.” he stated, but Seth shook his head. “I should have been more attentive.” he looked at his brother for a brief moment before turning back to the road. “She was sitting right there. On the same seat you sit on now… And she died there.”

They left the campground, and suddenly Gabriel didn’t find the otherwise beautiful scenery so endearing now. In his mind’s eye, he saw the black Mustang wrecked against a tree, his brother and his girlfriend inside it, broken and bloodied. He knew Seth barely survived that crash, he remembered sitting at his bedside until he woke up and healed so he could walk again. He didn’t know the impact the event had on him. “Stop blaming yourself!” he told Seth. “If I remember correctly, the driver of the trailer was drunk, along with the five buddies he had on board, and theirs was the culprit car, not yours.” To be honest, his brother’s sudden openness scared him. Seth always kept everything inside, he never uttered a word about that car accident after he left the Morton Memorial more-or less healed. Meanwhile, Seth remembered the following days after he woke up in a hospital room, with barely a bone intact from the crash. He remembered his little brother’s form, as he was sitting on the edge of his bed, and their parents, looking in from a window. And also Maggie’s parents. Who were devastated. He saw their faces blaming him for their child’s untimely passing like they were standing in front of him right now. He remembered Maggie’s mother coming to visit him when no one else was around, and asking him why did he survive. Why did he live, when Maggie was dead?

At least his own family offered some form of consolation, and even his father defended him against the attacks of the other family. The Greens moved out from Morton after a few months of personal vendetta against him, and he never heard from them again, yet he couldn’t forget the void he felt after the whole thing was over. He became even more of an outcast in school, some of his fellow students believed Mrs. Green’s story about him deliberately driving too fast and killing her daughter. After a while, he believed it himself. He had all the reason to. Seth never told anyone, but despite feeling grief for her loss, he never was in love with Maggie Green. His heart was already owned by someone else when they met, and he only used her to try and get over another girl who only saw him as a friend, and didn’t want anything else from him. “Could we talk about something else?” Gabriel asked, and Seth nodded. “Sure. Sorry for bringing it up…” “No, no…” the younger sibling protested “I’m actually glad you told this to me.” Seth gave a mirthless chuckle. “Now, don’t expect me to hug you and cry on your shoulder. I’ll leave that to the likes of you.” Gabriel gave him the finger, which prompted the older sibling to grin. “So, what are we going to do in Tacoma?” the younger Remington asked. “Meet with a friend of mine, and hear what troubles him, also offer some help if needed.” Seth answered. “I arranged a meeting in a place I know well, and he texted me back today morning, confirming it safe.” Gabriel was curious, though had his suspicions about what kind of “friends” his brother has. He imagined the usual tinfoil-hat wearing conspiracy theorist, hiding in a basement. It somehow lifted his spirits after their gloomy talk about Seth’s deceased high-school sweetheart. Long hours passed until they finally arrived, and when they stopped in the parking lot in front of a small restaurant downtown, all of Gabriel’s preconceived notions were flying out the window.

Before them, leaning to a sturdy bike was a man of native American origin, his dark eyes staring menacingly at Seth’s large form as he was getting out from the Mustang. “Ah, General Custer and his lackey.” he greeted the brothers as they approached. “I thought you got lost. Or rather, hoped so.” Seth didn’t bat an eyelid, but Gabriel could see on his stance that he got tense. “Where’s your father, Matt?” he asked. “Well, it didn’t surprise me that you don’t know.” the other man answered. “He’s in jail, sentenced for a couple of years for not having backup on a job.” Gabriel had a very bad feeling, like he was suddenly in the presence of a criminal gang. “Excuse me, but before you turn this conversation into a verbal Little Bighorn for my brother, would you elaborate on “not having backup”? And what kind of job?” he interfered. Matt was giving him a dirty look, but he told him. “Your brother was supposed to help my father with a case he was working on. Some palefaces called the police after he was asking them inconvenient questions, and the rest is history.” Gabriel was a bit confused still. “What case?” Matt looked at Seth “Does he even know?” he asked, to what the taller sibling shrugged. “He does. He just doesn’t believe it.” Matt chuckled mirthlessly, and shook his head. “But you still brought him along? You’re worse than I thought.” Gabriel raised his hands before his brother could answer. “Guys, guys, guys! I have an idea! How about we get inside this friendly looking place…” he gestured towards the restaurant they were standing in front of – “…and eat something, because I’m starving. You two can have a beer or anything else you want to drink, and we’ll discuss the case your father was working on, or a way to get him out of prison. I know a few good lawyers, it will be easy.” Seth didn’t answer, and Matt scoffed. “Thank you for the invitation, but I think I’ll pass. Also, I can manage to help my father on my own.” Gabriel wanted to protest, but Matt interrupted him. “I don’t trust you, so here’s a way to earn some of it: My father was investigating a ghost, that is only haunting some specific places here in Tacoma. A few families and locations are affected by the haunting, while others are not. So it’s obvious the ghost was from around here.” He fished a notebook out from his traveling bag, and gave it to Gabriel. “Here, I made some notes you might find useful. Solve this case, calm that ghost, and maybe… Maybe we’ll talk about pleasantries after then.” He sat on the bike, put on a pair of sunglasses, and said goodbye, leaving the Remington brothers standing. “All right, who’s this guy?” Gabriel turned to his brother a few seconds after Matt’s bike disappeared from sight. “He’s the son of my former mentor. I never knew John ended up in prison, and if I would, I’d try anything to get him out.”

Gabriel patted his brother’s shoulder. “And why did you leave in the first place?” Seth took the notebook, and nodded to his brother to follow, as he was heading to the entrance of Dirty Oscar’s. “I left John to work alone, because you called me.” Gabriel took a few long steps, and stopped in front of Seth. “Wait, you say you left your friend in trouble, because you came home for our parents’ funeral? Why didn’t you tell Matt?” Seth cast a tired look at his brother. “He wouldn’t believe me anyway.” They entered the restaurant, and sat down to a table, ordering their respective dinners. As they were waiting for it, Gabriel spoke again. “Okay, after we’re done here, I’ll speak with Matt. There’s a misunderstanding, and he didn’t seem like a bad person to me, angry of course, but in his case, it’s perfectly understandable.” Seth wanted to object, but Gabriel carried on. “I mean… What if it was me? I know it’s a very unlikely scenario, but how would you feel if I were in trouble because he had to go away for whatever reason? Because I think you’d be furious.” Seth was only paying half-attention; he was busy looking at Matt’s notes. There was a name that made his heart skip a beat. “Hey, look at this!” he slid the notebook over to Gabriel. The younger man made a questioning expression, so Seth elaborated. “Look at the names. Find any familiar?” Gabriel browsed through the contents, and raised his brow, while putting his fork down. “Angelica Green.” Seth nodded. “Maggie’s mother. So she’s troubled by a ghost, eh? I have a feeling that I know who it was.” Gabriel gave the notebook back to his brother. “All right. What now?” Seth stared at the name absent-mindedly. “Let’s find us a place to stay for the night. It’s too late to barge in and ask questions, especially from people who’d rather see me in a coffin than knocking at their door.” Gabriel nodded, and asked for the bill. “Sounds good to me.”

They got in the Mustang, and Seth started the engine, the radio along with it. It played “I Remember You” again. “Did you put it on loop?” He asked, thinking his brother is behind the phenomenon. “What?” Gabriel asked with a perplexed face. “Skid Row. I know you love them, but this song was playing at least three times until we got here.” Seth explained. “I’d rather listen to something else.” Gabriel frowned. “I didn’t put it on loop. Your car, your rules, remember?” Seth shrugged, and drove away to find a suitable motel for them. The song was indeed playing on loop, until the car stopped. Later, when Gabriel was already in bed, Seth was in the small bathroom, washing his face after brushing his teeth. As he looked up, he swore he saw the figure of a woman dressed in a white gown standing behind him. He turned around, but no one was there. Seth hummed, and went out to the Mustang, and opened the trunk. He double checked every item he thought he might need, then brought a token, similar to the one Gale made to contain the wendigo-spirits, into their bedroom, and hung it over Gabriel’s bed. “That should be enough to keep it away” he thought, then switched the light off and laid under the sheets. He was later awoken by a strange sensation. It was like a cold hand caressing his face. Seth mumbled something in his sleep, and turned over, thinking it’s just breeze from the air conditioner. He sprung up wide awake after he heard that eerie whisper right next to his ear. “I missed you so much…"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading, and sorry for breaking the whole chapter again into two pieces. Seems like I'm too long-winded to be able to upload a chapter in full. X'D  
> Notes:  
> \- According to the religious site I was browsing for ideas, Saint Dympna is the guardian saint of the insane. I have no knowledge of an institution named after said saint in anywhere around Morton or Seattle, so that is only my creation. 
> 
> \- General Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. He died at the batle of Little Bighorn, and is still a very controversial historical figure. (More on him on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Armstrong_Custer ) After reading the article about him through, I found some of his traits eerily similar to Seth's, so Matt's insult is scarily spot-on. XD And if we're at it: Matt has some very valid reasons to hate Seth, who, in his point of view, betrayed and abandoned his father in a middle of a dangerous endeavour, leading to his imprisonment, and has no excuse. Their feud will go on only for a limited time, so please try to endure it. Thanks.
> 
> \- Also, on a silly personal note: Ever since we created this story with my friend, we actually have a pair of necklaces with "Fire" and "Water", only instead of runes there are Japanese kanji on it. Don't know why I felt the need to tell this, but here. 
> 
> Up next: After some disturbing events and uncomfortable reminiscence of past loves and accidents, the brothers have to find a way to expel the ghost for good.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know if you like it, don't like it (why?), and/or if you want to see the rest of it! Not mandatory of course, but I would like to know if it's worth continuing or not.


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